Mage Elite
by Aloria
Summary: AU: Zelgadis woke up one day to find himself in the future. Things got worse from there. Contains ANGST, Fluff, OC:OC, AZ, KS, LG, and demented XF.
1. Who Am I?

Story Title : Me  
  
Chapter Title : Who Am I?  
  
He opened his eyes and stared at the light fixture that was a rectangle   
in the center of the room's ceiling. It wasn't a very big room, but it   
seemed big enough for one bed, a dresser, and some space to walk in. No,   
it wasn't very big, it was more like a closet then a room. The walls and   
floor were bare, made of metal plates though they refused to reflect   
anything but some of the light.  
  
Lifting his hand, he looked at the dark blue hard skin that covered it.   
Something didn't seem right. Something in the back of his mind stated   
that he should not have skin like that. When he tried to chase the   
thought down, he found it flown and could not remember what it had been   
in the first place. Still, it nagged at him like an irritating mosquito   
buzzes at one's ear.  
  
Slowly, he sat up and slid his feet to the floor, noticing   
that he was wearing a form fitting black suit. The suit had   
an insignia on the left breast and he tried to peer at it,   
but found it too obscure to decode. The insignia was of   
three outlined red diamonds raying out from each other, a   
filled gold circle.  
  
He jerked his head up as a section of the wall opened to show a glimpse   
of what seemed to be a hallway and the full figure of a man dressed in a   
long white coat over a black body suit with an insignia on the left   
breast. He was carrying some sort of electric device. "Ah, so you're   
awake," the man stated, his voice was smooth and somewhat reassuring.   
Lifting one of his thin hands, he brushed his silky short blonde hair   
back from his face. "I'm Doctor Katachi," he said and half turned, as if   
expecting him to follow.  
  
"What am I?" he asked as Katachi waved a short wand in front of him   
before replacing it on it's holder on the pad.  
  
Doctor Katachi smiled brightly at the words. "You are Project ZG. Your   
registration number is three-oh-two-five-six, and your official name is   
Grey."  
  
He nodded, fixing that name into his mind. "I am Grey."  



	2. What Am I?

Chapter Title : What Am I?  
  
Doctor Katachi lead the way along the hall of metal walls, rectangular   
light fixtures, and bare floors, Grey following swiftly behind. Other   
people wearing black body suits with the same insignia passed them   
without even looking, as if all were normal.  
  
Grey began to recognize where the doors were on the walls because they   
were indented somewhat with lighted panels beside each one. The hallway   
was boring. It curved slowly in one direction as if the structure it   
existed in were built in a huge circle. He simply hoped that his   
questions would be answered soon. Yet another person passed them, though   
this one was wearing a black body suit with a different insignia on her   
left breast, the only difference being that the center circle was blue   
instead of gold. A quick flash of memory informed him that Doctor   
Katachi had that same color on his insignia.  
  
Doctor Katachi slowed and halted in front of a door, placing his palm on   
the lighted pad beside it. With a soft swish, the door opened and   
Katachi led the way in. The room was huge with people all around, they   
wore the same body suits with blue insignia and white coats. Grey took a   
moment to close his eyes and heave a breath, things were strange, but he   
didn't have any idea of what to compare it to. He only knew that it was   
weird.  
  
The ceiling was far above and supporting it was a pillar which glowed   
like the palm pads beside the doors. There were work stations ranged all   
along the walls with people bustling from one to another, somewhat like   
white and black ants. A few glanced toward the door but then looked back   
to their work, except for one man who strode toward Doctor Katachi and   
spoke softly to the blue eyed man.  
  
"Your observations?" asked the brown hared man in a soft murmur,   
possibly meant for Grey to not hear.  
  
"Very good, sir. He's obviously aware of himself, he asked what he was   
when I walked in," Doctor Katachi replied, pushing his hair back from   
his face once more. Grey tipped his head to the side, seeing his own   
stiff silvery hair come forward into his eyes. It seemed right somehow,   
and he left it as it was. Taking a few paces forward, Grey looked the   
brown hared man over, he was somewhat plump with a red circle, though he   
wore a white coat like many of the others he'd seen. The man's nose was   
bulbous and his face white with a slight flush to his cheeks.  
  
Lifting one hand, he looked at it, then at Katachi's skin, it was creamy   
and soft looking. Grey returned his gaze to his own hand once more and   
eyed the hard substance that he was covered with. He finally pinned down   
what wasn't right, HE wasn't right. Pushing that somewhat depressing   
thought aside, he strolled past Katachi and the other man to peek over   
the shoulders of those working at stations. He hadn't gotten very far   
when a young man with fluffy light brown hair was walking past, tripped   
and almost fell on his face. Except that he found himself being held up   
by the back of his coat.  
  
Grey easily pulled the man back to his feet by the back of his coat and   
let go, returning to his casual stroll. Katachi grinned as he watched   
the scene. "Marvelous," he breathed. "Such speed!"  
  
"More then we expected," his companion agreed and they followed after   
Grey, watching him. "It makes you wonder if this is how HE really acted,   
doesn't it." Katachi nodded in agreement with his superior and typed out   
notes on the pad he'd brought with him.  
  
Finally, Grey turned to face them with a slight frown on his stony lips,   
his slit eyes staring at them, though the irises were extended, showing   
the aqua blue color. "What am I?" he asked.  
  
"You see?" Katachi said excitedly.  
  
His superior nodded sagely, "Though, didn't you say that's the same   
question he asked before?" Katachi was somewhat crestfallen and simply   
nodded. "I suppose it would be wise to tell him," the man mused, his   
dark brown eyes somewhat glazed. Katachi looked nervous and was about to   
protest but his superior officer simply started speaking. "You are one   
of the Elite Guard, usually used as guards for the royal family of the   
Seyruun Empire, but also used as operatives on special missions." At   
this explanation Katachi relaxed somewhat and smiled easily once more.   
"Your other uses include ambassadors to other nations or planets and   
imperial army."  
  
Grey nodded slightly, though he cast Katachi a stare that stabbed   
through the man's casual exterior and chilled his heart. The doctor   
nervously swallowed and felt as if his skin were being peeled away by   
the stare, then Grey turned away, headed in a different direction. His   
path took him to the center of the room where the column stood. He found   
that there was a metal railing around it and that it wasn't really part   
of the room. In fact, a wide hole surrounded it, giving glimpse into a   
floor below, there was even a floor above as the column extended   
upwards.  
  
Katachi and his superior followed, though the former was   
more reluctant. Grey suddenly turned to face them once more,   
staring past them as if they weren't there. He shook his   
head somewhat and turned back around.  



	3. Where Am I?

Chapter Title : Where Am I?  
  
Grey listened as he was talked at by Katachi, his superior having returned to his other business. Currently they were on a tour of the facility. Everything seemed to be the same metal walls, light fixtures, and doors though somehow Katachi knew his way around easily, as if he'd lived there his whole life. There were no signs as far as Grey could see that would give any indication as to where they were.  
  
"And here is the Information Center," Katachi said, gesturing at a door then turning to put his palm on the glowing pad beside it. "This is where we electronically imprint information directly into someone's mind. As an Elite, you will need a broad range of knowledge." The doctor led the way into the room who's ceiling was the same height as the one in the hall.  
  
It also wasn't a very big room, simply containing a chair with some strange contraption on top of it. Beside it on the wall was a screen built in with a keypad under it. "Have a seat," Katachi said and gestured toward the chair. Obediently, Grey sat in it, his legs automatically crossing at the knees and folding his arms on his chest. Katachi gave Grey a long look before placing the headset on Grey's brow, adjusting it and turning to the screen. "We'll start with something small."  
  
Katachi's fingers moved like lightning over the keypad, quickly locating one of the smaller files in the database available to staff. "Here's a map of the station, small as I could find," the doctor said as he started the process. The room swam in Grey's vision and he closed his eyes to block it out. Instead, he concentrated on what he could see in his mind.  
  
Apparently, he was on a metal structure floating on the direct course between two very populated planets, used as a refueling station and as a research station for the Seyruun Empire which spanned quite a lot of space, though how much wasn't included with the file Katachi had chosen. Grey's lips pressed together slightly, Seyruun seemed familiar, he just couldn't place where he'd heard it before.  
  
He was on the fourth floor of the station in the starboard side, his room was on port and up one floor. The column he'd seen in that large room was the gravity axis and reached up through the entire station which was shaped like a wheel. In all there were seven levels, the outer ring was used as a port for those coming in and headed out of the station.  
  
Each floor inward was dedicated to a specific thing, such as, the seventh and smallest was the officer's level, containing the quarters of those who were in charge and the bridge. The sixth level was Elite Guard training. The fifth was Elite Guard quarters. The fourth was science with the medical bay included. The Third was science personnel quarters. The second was cargo and mechanics. The first was ports.  
  
The officers had red circles on their insignia, Elite had gold, Science had blue, medics had white, mechanical personnel had green, and all others with no rank had no insignia.  
  
Grey opened his eyes once more to find Katachi in front of him, looking worried. "How do you feel?"  
  
"Fine," Grey replied shortly and thought a moment, "What about weapons?"  
  
Katachi blinked a few times, "Well... if that's what you   
want." At Grey's nod, Katachi returned to the screen and   
found up a few files of the more commonly used weapons.  



	4. When Did I Get Here?

Chapter Title : When did I get here?  
  
Katachi eyed Grey, he didn't seem to be in pain or anything, he simply   
sat in the chair and asked for different types of information, from the   
Seyruun Empire to weaponry and even mechanical data. The doctor was   
slightly confused, but hoped it was because he'd told Grey that he would   
have to have a wide variety of knowledge to be in the Elite.  
  
Finally, the doctor deemed that Grey had had enough for the day- in   
fact, he'd taken in more then most could handle in a week. He powered it   
down and removed the headset from Grey, getting glared at in return.  
  
"That's enough for today, it may be quick and easy but it does take its   
toll. I think you should rest until third meal," Katachi directed   
boldly, even though he was still being glared at by Grey.  
  
He watched as his experiment stood and strode steadily toward the door   
with his arms folded on his chest. Stopping at the door, he turned   
halfway to see if Katachi was coming or not and glared more. "You can   
stop glaring at me, you've already done far more then most can handle in   
a week and aren't showing any signs of it. After third meal you can go   
wander around some." Katachi stepped past Grey, realizing for the first   
time that though his experiment was three inches shorter, the doctor   
still felt dwarfed by the immense personality of the man. Inwardly, he   
marveled at it, they'd managed to not only create a perfect physical   
copy but they'd gotten his personality too.  
  
Shaking his head, Katachi stepped through the door once it opened and   
stopped once he felt Grey behind him once more. Turning to look at Grey,   
he pushed a smile onto his lips once more, though he felt unnerved by   
the cold stare he received in return. "You know the way back to your   
quarters. I have work to attend to." With that, the doctor headed down   
the long upward curving hallway, leaving Grey by himself.  
  
"Shimita," Grey muttered to himself and turned to look at the door he'd   
just exited once more before turning and headed the opposite way from   
Katachi's destination. "They really have confidence in me, even if it's   
obvious that I'm new. Where did I come from?" Grey said softly to   
himself as he walked, his arms folded on his chest. "Rest.." he snorted   
and looked up to find himself at the elevator. Pressing the button and   
waiting for it to come, he pondered his situation more.  
  
"Where did I come from?" Grey closed his eyes, remembering how he'd   
thought he heard someone yell his name before when he was in the Central   
Science Lab, usually called CSL. "I am Grey," he repeated to himself. It   
sounded almost, but not quite right. He'd had something in front of   
'Grey' before, he just couldn't remember.  
  
The elevator arrived and he stepped in, finding it empty. "There's   
supposed to be at least twelve thousand people here yet I've only seen   
at least a hundred today." He looked at the buttons indicating the   
levels he could go to, one through six, though the seventh was available   
only those with a key-card could get clearance to that level. Instead,   
he pressed the sixth. "I don't know what Katachi was expecting me to   
feel like, but I really feel fine, slight headache but that's all. I   
don't feel like resting, training... strength..." The word seemed to be   
something he'd worked for forever but could never feel satisfied with   
himself because of.  
  
The elevator rose, making him feel heavier and he gripped the bar that   
was attached to the walls at waist height. Slowing and coming to a stop   
was the prelude to the doors opening and Grey exited, taking a moment to   
address his new knowledge to figure out where he was before proceeding   
toward the CTC (Central Training Center). It was here that he found many   
more of the Elite. Most had gold, a few were of other sects, including   
several reds and a green. Grey took himself on a tour, familiarizing   
himself in reality with what he already knew. Finally, he found the   
sword practice area and carefully chose one of the practice blades.  
  
The one he picked was well balanced but it didn't look like any sword he   
vaguely remembered. His other knowledge told him that the swords they   
used came as hilts which could extend a blade of energy that was sharper   
and hotter then anything ever before except possibly the Weapons of   
Light. Something about the Weapons of Light rang a bell in his mind, but   
he couldn't pin it down, still.  
  
Taking the sword he'd chosen out into the practice area, he began   
working on moves his body knew but his mind didn't remember. He didn't   
stop to thing about it, simply let his body take control as his mind   
wandered through other things but turned up with nothing at all really.  
  
"You're Grey, aren't you?" someone interrupted his thoughts and Grey   
focused his eyes on the speaker. It was a redheaded young man with blue   
eyes and seemed somewhat familiar in a way that Grey couldn't pin down.  
  
"I am," he replied with a slight nod and stepped back out of his   
fighting stance.  
  
The young man smiled slightly, "Wanna have a go at it with me?" Grey   
noticed the insignia on the young man's badge had a red star in the gold   
circle. He was one of the higher ups of the Elite. Grey shrugged, as if   
he could care less either way. "Mind you, they say I'm the best   
swordsman ever, so don't feel too bad if you end up on the mat."  
  
Grey looked the young man over and shrugged once more. He was short and   
built like a girl but it seemed his attitude made up for it. Not to   
mention the aura of energy that surrounded him. Grey's mind stated   
softly that it'd only seen one person that strong before, but when Grey   
tried to trace the thought, he couldn't figure out who it was referring   
to.  
  
"I'm Wryan by the way." Grey's inner-self noticed also that the power   
was relatively untapped. He shrugged once more and stepped back into his   
stance, facing Wryan with a calculating stare. The redhead grinned   
smugly and stepped back into his stance as well.  
  
Grey noticed that a crowd had gathered, mostly of golds but some reds   
were watching. He could hear bets being passed back and forth as to who   
would win the match, not many were favoring Grey. He smirked slightly   
and darted toward Wryan so fast that his shape blurred and before the   
shorter young man could even blink, he found himself on his rear with a   
bruise developing on his chest where he'd been hit by the practice   
sword.  
  
The audience stood in silent shock as Wryan got to his feet once more   
and picked up his practice sword. "Okay, got me that time... but you   
won't be so lucky from now on," the redhead stated, glaring at Grey.  
  
Grey stood still in his stance, watching as Wryan advanced and tried for   
a strike. He was quick, but Grey was faster and blocked. Wryan tried   
again, doing fancy moves which were easily blocked again and a gain with   
moves that were almost as old as dirt. Wryan was well beyond annoyed and   
he rushed at Grey, trying to take him by surprise. Instead he tripped,   
finding Grey behind him with his practice sword resting on his shoulder   
and other hand on his hip in a cocky stance. "You shouldn't get mad   
about it. It only leads to mistakes," Grey stated calmly, his face   
neutral.  
  
Bets changed in the audience. Grey held out his hand to Wryan and   
watched as the redhead finally took it and was pulled up. Wryan dusted   
himself off and glared around. "How do you move so fast? You're a rock!"   
Grey's eyes narrowed slightly and he stared at Wryan with a look that   
made the shorter man slowly back away. "Look, I'm sorry, didn't mean it   
like that!" Grey's eyes narrowed and he murmured softly but Wryan didn't   
notice. "I-EEEEEGGHHH!!!"  
  
Grey stared down at the somewhat smoking young man who lay   
on the mat before him now. He'd live, he'd just remember the   
painful lesson. Turning, he looked at the audience who was   
once more in shocked silence. After a moment of thought,   
Grey realized that he couldn't remember what he'd just done   
to Wryan, instead of showing his slight confusion, he turned   
and replaced his practice sword where it belonged and strode   
out, he'd had enough for the day.  



	5. How Did I Get Here?

Chapter Title : How did I get here?  
  
Wryan glared up at Doctor Katachi, "I SWEAR it was that bastard who   
fried me!"  
  
"Alright, tell me again, HOW did he do it?" Katachi said patiently.  
  
Wryan took a breath and retold Katachi for the fifth time how Grey and   
he had sparred then Wryan had said the absolute truth. "And he just   
looked at me, said something and grabbed me. Doc! You don't know HOW   
much that hurt!! It was- it was like getting hit by lightning!"  
  
Katachi nodded, "I'll talk with him..." Turning, he left the berth where   
Wryan was lain out and yelling at all the nurses about being slow. He   
sighed, there were no marks on Wryan's body, yet he said he'd been fried   
just by a touch from Grey. Witnesses had said that they saw electricity   
crackle in Grey's hand the moment before he touched Wryan then saw it   
snapping around Wryan's body.  
  
Not to mention that there was the smell of cooked person hanging in the   
area of the CTC the episode had happened in. Katachi shook his head and   
quickened his steps toward Grey's quarters. When he opened the door,   
however, he found that Grey was not there. "Damn it! I should have known   
he wouldn't go to his room... Didn't go to his room when I told him to   
the first time either."  
  
"Looking for someone?" a calm voice asked from behind Katachi. The   
doctor jumped and spun around, finding himself face to face with Grey.  
  
"How the HELL is it that you can walk so quietly?!" Katachi's question   
was answered with a shrug.  
  
Grey glanced to the side, then said, "Isn't it third meal?"  
  
Katachi sighed, sagging back against the door frame, the door still   
open. "Yes, I have some questions for you..."  
  
"About Wryan? I don't know how I did it."  
  
Katachi eyed Grey for a long moment, "You're sure?" a nod was his   
answer. "Right... Perhaps... you should control your temper a bit more?"  
  
Grey was silent for a long moment, "He implied that I was a freak," he   
said coldly after a moment.  
  
Katachi sighed, trying not to look at Grey's eyes, they disturbed him.   
"He simply stated the truth, Grey, there's a difference."  
  
"You weren't there," Grey replied haughtily and started down the hall.  
  
The doctor walked a step or so behind Grey, marveling at his ability to   
walk almost silently, almost as if he'd had years of practice at being   
silent despite his weight. "True, I wasn't there." Katachi was silent   
once more as they entered the elevator. "Where are we going?"  
  
"Café on the first level, nice place," was Grey's casual reply.  
  
Katachi pushed his hair out of his face with his hand and looked at   
anything but Grey, feeling as if his soul were on trial every time he   
met that unsettling stare. "You've been there?"  
  
"No." Silence fell within the elevator once more and Katachi noticed   
that Grey's knuckles were almost white where he was gripping the bar on   
the side of the elevator.  
  
"Please, tell me if you remember anything."  
  
"I remember lots of things."  
  
Katachi looked at Grey and saw slight amusement in the somewhat shorter   
man's face. "Don't be a smart-ass. Tell me if you remember anything   
strange."  
  
"Like that spell I used." Grey's words were a statement, not a question,   
and he seemed sure of what it was that he'd used.  
  
"I thought you said you didn't remember what you did," Katachi gave Grey   
a long look but had to turn his face away.  
  
Grey smirked slightly once more but his expression quickly returned to   
its apparently habitual scowl. "I don't. Doesn't mean that I don't know   
what it was." The elevator door opened once more and Grey quickly   
exited, muttering under his breath, "Whatever happened to old-fashioned   
stairs?"  
  
Katachi clearly heard the words but he decided to ask anyway, "What did   
you just say?" Grey stopped and turned to look at the doctor.  
  
"Nani?" Once more, the word was of a long dead language and Grey didn't   
seem to realize he'd said it or that it was any different then what was   
normally spoken.  
  
"What did you just say?" Katachi repeated, watching Grey's expression.  
  
Grey pondered a moment, "I said what," he answered finally and turned to   
continue on his way to the café.  
  
"Before that," Katachi insisted, jogging slightly to keep up.  
  
"I said 'I don't. Doesn't mean that I don't know what it was.' Why are   
you asking this? You heard what I said." Grey cast a long look over his   
shoulder at Katachi, which made the doctor stumble slightly and drop   
back a pace or two.  
  
As they walked along the port level, they passed civilians who gave Grey   
long strange looks as if they'd never seen anything like him before, and   
in fact, they hadn't. It had been at least ten thousand years ago that   
anyone had seen anything like Grey. In fact, it was ten thousand years   
ago that his original had walked.  
  
It wasn't that much farther to the café and Grey entered as if he owned   
the place. Of course, cafés had changed since the day of Zelgadis   
Graywords but Grey took it all in stride. Making his way into the back   
of the café where there was a mostly secluded booth. There were plenty   
of people in the café, most were in large groups that were being very   
loud. Grey sat in the back corner and stayed silent until a nervous   
waitress came up clutching her data pad like a shield to ward off the   
monster in the corner.  
  
"Coffee," Grey said absently, "Little bit of sugar and cream in it with   
toast and strawberry jam." The waitress stared at him then looked at   
Katachi.  
  
"What'd he say?" she whispered loudly, glancing at Grey once more.   
Katachi kicked Grey's shin under the table, bringing him out of his   
thoughts.  
  
"Repeat that in standard?" Katachi said, giving Grey a long look which   
Grey returned, unnerving the doctor once more.  
  
"I said 'Coffee, with a little bit of sugar and cream in it, some toast   
and strawberry jam.' What's so hard to understand about that?" Grey   
heaved a sigh and leaned back once more with one elbow on the table and   
his head turned to stare at the picture displayed on the wall screen.  
  
"Where IS he from?" the waitress asked the doctor, "Never heard of   
anyone ever looking like that." Her eyes were wide as saucers and   
Katachi was somewhat amazed that Grey hadn't noticed.  
  
"I'll have the special," Katachi informed the waitress then stood and   
carefully turned her around and pushed her away from the booth. Retaking   
his seat, he found that Grey was staring at him. "You keep looking at me   
like that! What have I done?"  
  
Grey closed his eyes a moment. "Copied me. I'm a copy aren't I?" These   
words shook Katachi to the bone and he stared at Grey. Grey nodded   
slightly after looking at Katachi's expression. "Thought so. There's no   
reason to keep secrets from me, I already know the worst. Why did you   
create me?"  
  
Katachi swallowed and shook himself, trying to disband the feeling that   
Grey had read his mind. "The royal family of Seyruun Empire had...   
gotten a hold of the recently discovered body of Zelgadis Graywords   
twenty years ago, we started work on you seventeen years ago. It's taken   
that long to figure out how to properly copy something." Grey nodded   
slightly at this. "So, technically- you're only a week old." Katachi   
swallowed, watching Grey's non-reaction to this information. "But for   
the sake of records, we've listed you as seventeen. Your name in the   
records is Grey Wyrs and your were an orphan at the age of four.  
  
"We'd started work on your 'life' story and were going to implant it   
into your mind but... things got delayed on that and you woke up."   
Katachi pulled his napkin between his fingers nervously as he watched   
Grey stare at the picture to his left once more, his chin resting on his   
hand, elbow on the table.  
  
"No need for that now."  
  
"You- you're alright with knowing?" Katachi asked, leaning forward   
slightly.  
  
Grey shrugged his other shoulder, "Doesn't really matter either way   
because the memories are still there, just buried. I'd rather know what   
I am now instead of later once I've gotten used to being this Grey Wyrs   
person."  
  
Katachi nodded, sitting back once more, kicking his feet out in front of   
him, "Good point. So the memories are there? We weren't sure if they   
would be. We knew that in... his time Copy making was very advanced and   
it even got the memories of the original. Most magic has been forgotten   
these days, just simple spells like light and sleep are left, and they   
don't work very well anymore."  
  
"Monovolt..." Grey murmured, blinking himself into reality. "That was   
the spell I used."  
  
Katachi scratched the back of his neck, "About that... try not to... you   
know.. fry people like that?" Once more, he got a long look from Grey   
and was disturbed. Thankfully the waitress returned with their orders   
and set them on the table, staring at Grey. Katachi had to push her away   
once more.  
  
Grey shrugged once more, returning his gaze to the picture on the wall   
once more, his right hand automatically moving to pick up his coffee mug   
and sip the hot liquid. "So, as one of these 'Elite', will I be going on   
a mission?"  
  
Katachi weakly chuckled, "Wanting to hot-foot it out of here already?   
Well, yes, in fact, your first is to accompany the Crown Princess on her   
journey to the Ket system."  
  
"Her name?" Grey asked, both his hands on his coffee mug now, slowly   
turning it on the table top, his eyes were watching it, though he didn't   
seem to be seeing it. He lifted the mug to his lips with both hands,   
waiting for the answer.  
  
"Amelia XXXIX." Grey had just been taking a dip of coffee, he spit it   
out on the table and coughed some. Katachi tried to be helpful by   
pounding Grey's back but found he only hurt himself and subsided to   
watching as the younger man sat silently after his coughing fit, head   
bowed and hands clenched in fists.  
  
"Shimita," he whispered softly then banged his fist on the table.  
  
"Try not to get too worked up about it.. you can be reassigned, though   
she was looking forward to meeting you."  
  
Grey shook his head and grabbed some napkins to wipe up the splattered   
coffee. "No. It's fine. I'll do it." He again sipped his coffee as if   
nothing had happened at all. Katachi sighed.  
  
"You'll be leaving tomorrow, so... you woke up just in time. Your   
partner is- ironically Wryan Inverse."  
  
Grey burst out laughing at this, shaking his head, "How did I know?   
Maybe it was the hair? No.. had to be the aura."  
  
Katachi blinked in confusion at Gray but continued on, "My senior   
officer Prats will be briefing you further on your duties."  
  
"Fat brown hared man?" At Katachi's nod, Grey returned his gaze to his   
mug and sipped from it. "And when will he be briefing me?"  
  
"After third meal, whenever you're finished we should head up there."   
Katachi hurried with his own third meal and watched as Grey picked at   
his toast. "Do you ..." he stopped himself and shook his head, "Ignore   
that."  
  
"Fine," Grey stated and ignored Katachi until he was finished with his   
third meal. When the doctor set his drained cup of tea aside, Grey stood   
and headed toward the door as if expecting Katachi to follow   
immediately.  
  
"Hey!" Katachi yelped and got up quickly to hurry over to the register   
to pay for their meal. "Wait up, Grey!" Katachi ran to catch up once he   
got his credit chip back. He felt somewhat peeved that his experiment   
was already out the café and halfway down the ports before he'd even   
given his chip to the AI behind the counter.  
*******  



	6. Why Am I Here?

Chapter Title : Why am I here?  
  
Grey and Katachi stood in front of Prats, the latter standing at   
attention, the former standing at a total disregard for any authority at   
all. "The area between the Homeworld and Ket has pirates and it's likely   
your ship will be attacked at any time during the time you're in normal   
space. The trip should last six months, though most of the time will be   
spent in transit. Six months will be spent in regular space," Prats said   
from behind his desk of actual golden oak which was rare in the further   
out sectors of space.  
  
"The Crown Princess will be coming here as her first stop from the   
Homeworld and you will board her ship," Prats continued, shuffling some   
data pads on his desk. "Your superior officer on the trip will be Wryan   
Inverse, you are to treat him with respect. Any questions?"  
  
"No," Grey replied, staring at Prats with an unnerving gaze which made   
the large man begin to sweat.  
  
"You're to report to the CSL at the beginning of first shift for data   
implanting," Prats continued.  
  
"Anou, sir, he already knows."  
  
"What?! Did you tell him?" Prats practically jumped out of his char and   
seemed about to strangle Katachi. Grey sidestepped, placing himself   
between Katachi and Prats with efficiency that startled both full   
humans.  
  
"No. I realized it for myself. I will 'be' this Grey Wyrs, but I would   
rather be myself as well," Grey said firmly then turned walking out of   
the office, leaving Katachi and Prats alone.  
  
Grey heaved a sigh. "Am I Zelgadis Graywords as well as a copy? Would I   
mind if my copy took up my life after I was long dead? I wouldn't,   
therefore it's not likely that he would. I am Zelgadis Graywords. This   
is my new life. I will do the things he didn't have the chance to."  
  
Heaving a yawn, he stepped into the elevator then saw Katachi come   
running down the hallway after him. With a sigh, Grey stuck his hand out   
to keep the doors from shutting and let Katachi in the elevator. "Prats   
is really impressed with you," Katachi said as he leaned against the   
back wall of the elevator to catch his breath.  
  
"How nice," Grey said somewhat sarcastically, getting a look from   
Katachi. The doctor shook his head with a soft chuckle then stood up   
straight, pushing his blonde hair back from his face.  
  
"I've got some more work that needs to be done, so fourth floor for me,"   
Katachi said and rubbed the back of his neck. Silence fell and Katachi   
looked at Grey, "Where are you headed?" he was finally forced to ask.  
  
"My room," Grey replied finally, staring straight ahead.  
  
"Oh. Well, I'll see you before you leave at least," Katachi offered a   
smile.  
  
"Fine," Grey replied in the language Zelgadis Graywords had spoken many   
years ago, he didn't even realize until the elevator doors opened and   
he'd already gotten out on the fifth floor. The doors closed behind him   
before he could fully turn around. He shook his head and headed down the   
hall, head slightly bowed as he contemplated his fate once more.  
  
  



	7. Is That Her?

Chapter Title : This is Her?  
  
Grey stood somewhat at attention with Wryan beside him. Wryan was   
casting Grey dirty looks and obviously still upset about being fried but   
he wasn't going to show disrespect to the princess- who had yet to   
appear. Therefor, Grey was lounging somewhat, arms crossed, weight on   
one foot. He was aware that he was getting strange looks by those   
walking past the guards blocking the airlock that the princess would   
emerge from.  
  
"You really aren't taking this seriously are you?" Wryan hissed, leaning   
toward Grey with an evil look.  
  
"I realize that you think there could be an extraordinary amount of   
money involved in this, Wryan, but she's not even here," Grey pointed   
out and glanced at Wryan.  
  
Wryan sighed, "True," and slouched. "But then.. you don't know what the   
princess LOOKS like do you, Grey?" Just then the airlock whirled open   
and the short young man jumped back to attention.  
  
Grey slowly turned his head to look at the air lock and felt like   
someone had hit him in the back of the head with a sword. The young   
woman was NOTHING like what he'd vaguely thought Amelia should look   
like. True, her hair was black, and true her eyes were sapphire blue,   
but that was pretty much where similarities ended.  
  
She was about five feet and four inches, to Grey's assumption, with hair   
twice as long as that it seemed. Her hair was tied up in a fantastic   
design of braids that were wrapped around her head and let fall down her   
shoulders with two locks loose in front of her ears. Perched atop her   
hair and nestled within it were jewels and a tiara that Zelgadis   
recalled Amelia wearing long ago. Starting at the tops of her ears was a   
string of diamonds that was clipped all down the edge of her ears to the   
lobes and hanging even further down, almost past her chin. Her face was   
oval with wide sapphire eyes bright and full of life with a light   
dusting of freckles on her cheeks.  
  
She had a very nice figure for a girl of about seventeen, her curves in   
all the right places with just the right amount of immaturity to make   
her look completely innocent yet capable of breaking hearts. She wore a   
deep blue dress that draped in folds down to the floor and which she   
held up with her dainty hands covered by the lace ends of her sleeves.   
Hanging around her neck was a gold necklace and oval locket.  
  
~*~  
Zelgadis held out his hand, an oval locket of gold dangling from his   
fingers, "I- want you to have this.. Amelia.." A blush was smeared   
across his cheeks like paint on his rocky skin.  
  
Amelia moved closer, taking his hand into both of hers. "Zelgadis-  
san..." she whispered softly, "Why do you have to go?" tears glittering   
in her eyes.  
  
"Because... I- it- this might be it, Amelia, it might be my cure and...   
I'm sorry about doing this to you..." he replied, looking at their   
hands, watching as Amelia tried to slide her fingers between his. He   
pulled his hand away. "I'll come back.. when I'm cured."  
  
Amelia watched as he left, one hand on her stomach, the other clutching   
the locket he'd given her. She bowed her head, tears falling, "I- love   
you..." she whispered.  
~*~  
  
Grey blinked, coming back into reality, realizing that that was the   
locket Zelgadis Graywords had given to Amelia- the first. He found that   
he'd been staring at her- or more precisely, the locket, but she   
interpreted it as staring at her and blushed.  
  
"Why.. Mister Wyrs," she flicked out a fan and fluttered it uselessly in   
front of her face, "Do you find me attractive?" She didn't actually say   
that, but Grey could swear she had simply by actions. Closing his eyes   
he heaved a sigh. She fluttered her fan more and actually spoke, her   
voice dulcimer, "I assume you are Grey Wyrs?" she breathed, gliding   
closer, one hand lifting to pick up the locket and open it, looking   
inside it, she looked at Grey and favored him with a smile, much to   
Wryan's jealousy. "You look just like him!" she breathed her   
exclamation, hardly seeming excited at all.  
  
"Princess-" one of her advisors started to say. He was a wizened old man   
with a long white beard and eyebrows that hung in front of his squinted   
eyes. His skin was sagging from his bony face and his head was bald with   
dark speckles. Almost like an egg.  
  
"I already realized what I am. The caution is not needed," Grey stated   
simply, eyeing the four advisers ranged behind the princes. They'd   
entered while he'd been in his mini-flashback. His words seem to shock   
the four old men and mostly the princess.  
  
"So- can you remember anything of his life? I want to know if the   
stories are true!" the princess gushed, dropping her breathy act and   
grabbing his arm, practically climbing up his shirt. "Please tell me   
Wyrs-san!"  
  
Grey debated a moment, finally lifting his hands and placing them on her   
shoulders. He firmly turned her around to face the airlock once more and   
gave her a gentle push toward it. "I suggest getting on our way. The   
trip will already be taking possibly over six months and therefor should   
be started."  
  
Amelia XXXIX was too startled to protest as she was propelled into the   
ship by a somewhat annoyed Grey. As he herded her up the ramp and past   
her advisors, he muttered under his breath, "Great, stuck baby-  
sitting..." The only person who understood what he'd said was one of   
Amelia XXXIX's advisors. He was one of the younger ones wearing a purple   
scull cap over his salted black hair.  
  
The advisors hurried after Grey and the princess, squawking   
that he shouldn't touch her like that. The Chimera ignored   
them of course and hurried Amelia XXXIX along. Wryan stood   
in shock at Grey's actions and somewhat belatedly noticed   
that he was the only one left outside. He hurried after them   
yelling, "Hey! Don't hog her all to yourself Grey!"  



	8. Who Needs Music Lessons?

Chapter Title : Who Needs Music Lessons? 8  
  
Grey sat in the room on the princess's ship that he shared with Wryan, staring at the wall opposite him. Wryan was in the room putting his things away in the cabinets that he'd claimed as his. Grey simply sat on the edge of his bed, staring.  
  
Wryan sat back on his heels, looking over at Grey with a frown. "You're starting to make me nervous! What the hell are you doing? Please don't tell me you're some sort of new AI unit just made to LOOK like-"  
  
"I'm alive just as you are. I'm simply... thinking," Grey's words interrupted Wryan before he could finish saying something that might upset the Chimera Copy.  
  
Wryan eyed Grey, "You ARE an AI.. how ELSE could you fry me like that? I have to get you back for that too!"  
  
He turned his eyes down toward the redhead, "How childish," Grey murmured, stood and left the room. Wryan eyed the door as it swished shut behind Grey.  
  
"Well.. he doesn't move like a robot," Wryan mused then turned back to inspecting the medium sized room. It had two bunks, one on either side of the room. Under the bunks was some drawers that were for clothes. Another door led to the bathroom and on either side of that door were cabinets for anything else the occupants of the room would need to store. Wryan had plenty of things, strange objects he intended to sell as well as personal items.  
  
Grey paced down the hall of the ship, he was aware that they had another hour till departing the station, but he didn't feel like going back out onto the station. Instead, he memorized the ship by wandering through it. The halls seemed all the same, metal walls, floors, ceilings, the walls painted a warm cream with the bottom half blue with a reoccurring print of the Seyruun seal. Now and then there were doors on either side of the hall and he didn't bother entering them, simply stayed in the hall to keep out of other people's rooms.  
  
He paused when he heard the sound of someone singing, coming from one of the doors and cocked his head, his sensitive hearing picking up the sound faintly. A human would never have heard it. Pacing closer to the door, he almost jumped when it opened suddenly.  
  
The scene inside was of the princess standing in front of a music stand trying to sing something, it wasn't that she wasn't a good singer, it was the fact that she didn't want to be doing it at all. One of her advisors, the younger one with black hair was playing a baby grand piano that was somehow strapped to the floor so that it wouldn't slide when the ship rocked or something. The princess looked up and beamed, "Ah! Come to tell me all about yourself Wyrs-san?"  
  
The advisor sighed, as if he really was having a hard time. Grey paced into the room, coming around to look at the music she was singing. He realized that this wasn't very hard music, but the style had certainly changed from when he learned to read music. "No, not really," he replied and she pouted at him.  
  
"Then why are you here?" she demanded of him, putting her fists on her hips and tapping the toe of her foot. Grey picked up the music and flipped through it, ignoring her for the moment. "Answer me!" she stomped her foot and clenched her fists hard, glaring at him. It was then that she realized that he was singing softly, his voice a velvet tenor. The pronunciations of the words were completely off but that didn't matter, the song was still beautiful.  
  
The princess stood with her hands clasped, holding her breath as she listened, her advisor was shocked to say the least. Grey came to the end of the piece and put it down on the stand, blushing somewhat at Amelia XXXIX's applause. "That was.. beautiful! Did you take a music-reading disk? Can I borrow it?!"  
  
Grey eyed her, "No. I've known how to read music, through hard work. Taking a disk is just copping out, knowing everything about singing or reading music doesn't make up for not having learned to do it by yourself." The advisor smiled happily as he noticed his princess's rapt attention to Grey's words.  
  
"If I learn how to sing this perfectly then will you tell me a story about your adventures?" Amelia asked, thinking she was sharp for making the deal.  
  
He pondered it for a moment, glancing at the advisor who was looking at him pleadingly. Grey sighed, finally nodding, "Yes," he shot a look at the advisor who would pay for talking him into making the deal. The princess, overjoyed with the arrangement jumped up and down a few times, giggling happily.  
  
"Goody!" she exclaimed and grabbed up her music, running from the room, "It's lunch time now. See you soon, Wyrs-san," and within seconds, she was out of the room, skirt flapping behind her.  
  
Grey sighed and looked at the advisor who stood from his seat in front of the baby grand. "I thank you so much! It's such a chore to get her to do things sometimes. If there's ever anything you want or need, just ask me and I'll get it immediately. I am Jiras, Princess Amelia XXXIX's music and literature tutor as well as advisor."  
  
Grey was silent once more, looking the man over. "Do you have any books?"  
  
"Yes, I do, in fact," the advisor beamed happily, clasping his hands together, "I could show them to you if you would like." Grey nodded and Jiras turned, leading the way out of the music room and further down the hall to another room. "I- also love history, so that is what I mostly have books about, but I also have some of the older kind of books, ones made from actual wood pulp. But they're written in the old language."  
  
He turned, stepping through a door that opened automatically for him, Grey following behind slowly and looking around. It was exactly like the room he was sharing with Wryan but for one person. "I'm really sorry about this," Jiras said, turning to face Grey once more. "I can tell you don't like the thought of protecting the princess. I heard you mention something about baby-sitting earlier."  
  
Grey looked at Jiras's face, seeing that the man apparently knew something of the 'old language'. Jiras turned then, kneeling to rummage in the cabinet for one of his older books, pulling out a crackled book that was almost falling apart. "It's not in good shape but it's still very interesting. It's a reprinted journal of King Kerel of the fourth age." He handed the book over to Grey, though seemed unwilling to part with it. Then again, there seemed to be something odd about the way the man had chosen the book.  
  
"I will return it the moment I finish, thank you," Grey bowed his head somewhat to the older man and followed as Jiras led the way to the galley for lunch.  
  
The galley was a large room- in the sense that it was larger then any of the other rooms Grey had seen so far. It had several tables in it, long ones that reached almost from one end of the room to the other. The room was half filled with people, apparently there were more people on the ship then Grey had first thought there were. He paced up the aisle between two tables to the serving bar, getting only a cup of tea and heading back to a seat at the back of the room. Taking his seat, he set the book on the table and carefully turned to the first page, sipping his tea and setting it aside in favor of the book.  
  
He was aware that Jiras was watching him and Wryan was busy scarfing down all the food he could, thankfully Amelia XXXIX was being more dainty in her eating. It was then that he got interested in the book, finding out that the 'fourth age' wasn't all that long after Philionel's rule. He felt somewhat unnerved as he read onward, the beginning was of normal everyday matters, then someone claiming to be the real heir to the throne came, someone who hadn't been raised in the palace.  
  
It was then that Grey realized that the 'Fourth Age' was directly after Philionel's rule and Kerel was the son of the Prince Phil that Zelgadis had had dealings with. "Phil never had a son..." Grey muttered, leaning forward over the book, his tea forgotten and cold, he didn't even realize that lunch had ended long ago and he was the only one left other then the chef.  
  
Grey was a third of the way through the book when he realized that his back was hurting and sat up straight, looking around. He took a napkin and stuffed it into the book to hold his place while he went and got a refill of tea before heading back to his room to continue reading.  
  
He entered his room and found Wryan on his bed playing some hand held video game. The redhead looked up and frowned, "Finally woken up. What the hell is so interesting about that moldy old thing?"  
  
"Considering that it happened right after Phil's death, it is interesting," Grey replied, going over to his own bed and carefully taking a seat, setting his cup of tea on the cabinet next to the head of his bed. Taking the pillow, he propped it against the wall and opened the book once more.  
  
"Who's Phil?" Wryan asked.  
  
"Lina! How could you -" Grey blinked, frowning then looking at Wryan, "Prince Phil- or he was a king at one point- is related to Amelia XXXIX and I- Zelgadis- knew him personally."  
  
Wryan set his vidgame down and leaned closer to Grey on the bed. "You really ARE an AI, aren't you? You don't need food or drink, you just got that tea to trick us."  
  
Grey slowly placed the napkin back in the book and frowned at Wryan. "No," he stated firmly.  
  
"No what?"  
  
Grey leaned closer toward Wryan, mocking the redhead's position. "No to everything you just said. I'm not an AI, I am not trying to fool you into thinking I'm not, and I do need food and water, I simply am not hungry right now."  
  
"Then drink that!" Wryan gestured toward the cup.  
  
"Will doing this make you stop distracting me?" Grey asked and at Wryan's nod he picked up the cup and gulped. Once the cup was empty, he showed it to Wryan.  
  
"Cool man! You sure can chug! That was less then three seconds almost! Not bad for an AI." Grey slipped and landed on the floor, headfirst with a loud clang and a dent in the floor.  
  
Grey slowly got up, brushing the wrinkles out of his clothes and stalking closer to Wryan. "Is it true that AI's can't kill people?" he asked softly, watching Wryan's expression slowly change to one of horror. The redhead shot toward the door and was out it with Grey on his tail. "FLARE ARROW!" A howl and explosion sounded off at the same time, startling a lot of people and setting off the fire alarm as Grey stomped back into his room and returned to his book.  
  
******* 


	9. Musings of a Chimera.

Chapter Title : Musings of A Chimera. 9  
  
Grey sat on his bed once more with a laptop after dinner- or third meal,   
Grey always found himself thinking of it as 'dinner'. He was typing   
laboriously, the slow clicks of the keys grating on Wryan's nerves as he   
tried to play his vidgame once more. He was bandaged up after the fiery   
episode but otherwise he wasn't that hurt. Beside Grey was the book he'd   
been reading and was now looking back and fourth from the book to the   
laptop he'd requested from Jiras.  
  
Wryan gritted his teeth together, glancing towards Grey without turning   
his head. "What the hell are you typing anyway?!" Wryan demanded   
finally, pressing pause on his game and levering himself up on one elbow   
to peer at his roommate. Grey didn't respond, too absorbed in typing to   
answer. "Hey! Don't ignore me!"  
  
"I heard you," Grey answered finally, lifting his head and arms,   
stretching them then rubbing his neck with his hands.  
  
Wryan sighed, "Well then what're you typing?"  
  
"A translation of the book I'm reading," Grey replied with a sigh,   
looking at Wryan, "So that more enlightened people can read about their   
past then just those who know how to read my language." Grey had no   
problem with calling it his language. Technically he was dead and so was   
the language he spoke, therefor he was the only one who spoke it   
fluently.  
  
"Are you implying that I'm not SMART enough to be interested in things   
like that?" Wryan asked, swinging his feet to the floor and stalking   
over toward the Chimera. Grey smirked slightly, as if to say, 'would I   
do that?'. The redhead folded his arms on his chest and leaned his   
weight on one hip. "You send it to my console and I'll read it," Wryan   
sniffed.  
  
"I'm not sure, that might be too much trouble. I already have to send it   
to Jiras," Grey mused, putting a finger to his bottom lip, though he was   
obviously amused.  
  
Wryan glared at him and stomped out of the room, leaving Grey to his   
work once more. The Chimera looked down at the laptop and clicked the   
save button before setting it aside and getting up to take a stretch   
before returning to typing. He saved his original document and pulled up   
a new one, titling it as the date and time.  
  
~*~  
I am Zelgadis Graywords, and yet I am Grey Wyrs. Perhaps I should let   
Zelgadis go? Write down his memories and let him rest and become Grey   
Wyrs completely, or should I continue as Zelgadis?  
  
I remember so many different things and it breaks my heart to know that   
Amelia died supposedly of suicide... and she gave birth. The book I am   
reading implies that the child wasn't legitimate, that she'd cheated on   
her husband. It doesn't say what happened to the child she gave birth to   
but Philionel had to remarry and his son Kerel became the king. Though,   
the book did say that a stranger came and tried to take the kingdom, a   
kind of one-man army. He ended up being killed by Xelloss.  
  
I need to know more. I want to go back and fix what happened because I   
feel guilty for it. I should have known that it would happen! How could   
I have not foreseen that it would happen.  
  
I well knew that she was about to get married when I went back to the   
palace after the last 'Adventure' we had with Lina. I knew. And why did   
I do it? Because I wanted a moment's happiness. I wanted to know   
happiness for at least a little while. I wanted to be with the one who   
loved me where I could not even accept myself as I was. I wanted to be   
with the one I loved. Funny how I can realize that now, long after she's   
dead. Was I scared? Scared that if I chose her I would be stuck a   
Chimera for the rest of my life, that I would never be human again? Or   
was it because she would have been the next ruler? I don't mind leading,   
but a whole kingdom? Would they have accepted me?  
  
That bastard she had to marry probably killed her. Amelia wouldn't have   
committed suicide, she loved life too much. But then again, I was dead   
by then too. It may have been too much for her.  
  
Stupid fool that I was... if I hadn't chased the queen of diamonds I'd   
be with the queen of hearts still.  
  
This is my parting gift to Amelia, my beloved, I don't care about being   
a Chimera anymore. It was the cause of so much frustration and   
unhappiness that I missed the only chance at happiness I could have had   
as Zelgadis. I leave that quest to the past. Besides, I don't think   
there are any possible ways to cure myself anymore in this time.  
~*~  
  
Saving and closing the document, Grey set the laptop aside and got up,   
realizing that Wryan had left, having gotten annoyed with the slow   
pecking at the keys. Grey was simply incapable of typing correctly,   
having never done it before. He grabbed up a new pair of pants and   
headed into the bathroom for a shower, taking advantage of Wryan's   
absence.  
*******  



	10. Dreams.

Chapter Title : Dreams. 10  
  
Wryan lay awake. Sure it had been a long day and he was tired as hell,   
but he was awake still, long past the time for the first shift on the   
ship to have gone to bed. He sat up and looked across the dark room at   
the REASON for his alertness at the middle of his downshift.  
  
The reason was, simply put, Grey Wyrs. He was asleep. Wryan had to admit   
that this gave proof to the guy's being alive, and to all appearances,   
he was having a nightmare. He kept twitching, his hands ripping the   
sheet every time he twitched. Wryan also noticed soft moans of fear or   
something.  
  
Finally, Grey sat up with a sharp scream of terror, clutching what was   
left of the sheet and gasping for breath. "Well, I suppose it was a   
nightmare," Wryan stated calmly, one knee propped up and his elbow   
resting on it. He yawned. "Now _I_ can get some sleep."  
  
"Damn you!" Grey hissed, getting out of bed and grabbing his boots and   
uniform top in the dark, he always slept with his pants on and never   
undressed while Wryan was in the room. Wryan listened as the man pulled   
his shirt on and stalked toward the door. He was half blinded by the   
light when the door opened but it shut quickly enough and he finally   
settled down to sleep.  
  
Grey paused outside his door to pull on his boots. "Damn him!" he   
grunted to himself and stomped his feet to settle the boots on right. He   
then started stalking down the hall in a direction he hadn't taken yet.   
"What I wouldn't give to have had Gourry there! He would have made a   
joke or something, gotten my mind off it, but nooo had to be Wryan with   
his damn sarcastic comments."  
  
Grey knew very well that he was scaring the people who were passing him   
on their way to their rooms. Apparently it was shift change, meaning   
there was still half the downtime still left for Wryan to sleep. "Damn   
him! Just like Lina, too concerned about himself to care about anyone   
else. How the hell did he GET the name Inverse anyway? I thought Lina   
only had a sister!" He hadn't realized that he may have ended up   
somewhere near an area he shouldn't be in until he stepped through a   
door and into what he'd least expected to find on a star ship.  
  
He stood in shock at the sight of ornamental trees, plants, and shrubs   
with a path of wood chips winding through it. He breathed a sigh,   
feeling his back relaxing as he started down the path, his hands linked   
behind him. He could hear an audio recording of birds. He didn't   
recognize their songs, but he didn't care at the moment, they were   
soothing and he was glad he'd found it.  
  
The memory of his nightmare whisked away in the scent of nature and he   
found a place under a tree to settle and let himself relax more. He   
wished he had a guitar or something, remembering that he'd once found   
that relaxing, but just sitting was fine. Grey found his mind clearing   
and he realized that he'd been living in a haze of frustration, fear,   
and anger since he woke up in this new world. He took a moment to think   
about what he was afraid of.  
  
"Rejection," he said mentally, tipping his head back to rest against the   
tree. "I'm afraid I'll meet the same prejudices now as I did back then.   
I'm afraid I'll retreat into myself again and there won't be anyone to   
pull me out... no one like Amelia..." He didn't realize he was crying   
until he had to sniffle but he let the tears flow, keeping his eyes   
closed and silently mourning her death. "So young, yet so wise. She had   
problems but she chose to be happy in spite of them. And she tried to   
bring me into that knowledge. I didn't listen. Damn fool that I was."  
  
He pulled away from that topic and thought about his frustration. "I   
don't know how to fit in here. I know some things, but it's mechanical   
stuff. Weapons and things that really aren't important in peaceful   
situations. I should try to talk to Jiras more... He seems like the type   
of person I could get along with- better then Wryan anyway."  
  
Having come to that decision, he turned to the other emotion he felt,   
"I'm angry at myself. For behaving the way I have been toward people.   
It's not how I want to be, and yet I can't change it, just as I can't   
change my stone to flesh. Amelia made me feel human once, when I was   
with her that one time, but now I just feel like shit. I'm angry at   
myself for the past. I'm angry because I died and left Amelia after   
promising to myself that I'd go back to her. I had her bracelet when it   
happened-"  
  
~*~  
Zelgadis looked down at his hand, seeing the bracelet Amelia had given   
him. She'd given it to him what seemed forever ago, forever and a day,   
yet he still had it. He clutched it, the once purple and pink cloth band   
stained with blood.  
  
"I- Gomen Amelia... Gomen.. I tried, and this is what I get for wanting   
something out of my reach." Zelgadis whispered to himself, knowing it   
was only making his situation worse by bothering to talk. He coughed,   
blood gushing up his throat from his lungs and dripping down his chin.   
Blood soaked him practically from head to toe. His own blood. He knew it   
was dripping down the wall as well.  
  
He forced himself to stop coughing, closing his eyes, fixing the image   
of Amelia's smile in his face. "Forgive me..." He whispered, a single   
tear falling from beneath his steely lashes and gliding through the   
crack between the raised rocks in his skin.  
  
His head finally sank forward and his grip on the bracelet loosened,   
finally letting it drop to the ground far below him. Zelgadis vaguely   
remembered hoping that the stone didn't break before the last whispers   
of life left him a corpse hanging pinned to a cavern wall.  
~*~  
  
Grey snapped his eyes open, realizing that he'd fallen asleep, he lifted   
a hand and wiped his face on his sleeve, realizing that he'd been crying   
in his sleep. Sniffling, he got up and brushed his pants off before   
heading out of the strange room filled with plants. He didn't know if he   
was allowed to be there, so he would find somewhere else to hang around.   
Perhaps the galley would be open and he could get a soothing cup of   
coffee.  
*******  
  
  
  
  
  



	11. A Plot Stirs!

CHAPTER TITLE : A Plot Stirs. 11   
(Can you believe it? I may actually have a PLOT in this story other then just ranting about Zelgadis! ^_^)   
  
(After some thought I realized that the other links I posted didn't really work, so I went searching and I found out that THIS is the site that the guy's fanart is on. Soo, check out his art because this guy draws AMAZING pictures!)   
  
http://tsoc.new21.net/index2.htm   
  
  
  
The galley was open and Grey sat silently in the back corner of the room, sipping the hot liquid now and then, but mostly he stared at it. "Somewhere back there I've got the knowledge to copy someone... if- if there were anything left of Amelia's body then I could copy her, but.. it's been ten thousand years and I really doubt anything is left of her by now. Am I doomed to be unhappy no matter when or where I am? Or is this my punishment?" He would have spoken his thoughts aloud, except there was one other person in the galley, sitting and eating a late lunch or something. The man seemed intent on his own thoughts, but Grey didn't want anyone overhearing what he was contemplating.   
  
"We're not even heading toward the homeworld, we're headed in the opposite direction of it. Probably when this little outing is over I'll have to go back to that space station with Katachi because I'm his little pet experiment. Shimita. Maybe I'll get lucky and get assigned to the home planet.   
  
*"Grey Wyrs, please report to the bridge"* a voice echoed throughout the galley and startled Grey enough to make him almost spill his coffee into his lap. He sighed and picked up the mug, taking it with him. He took his time getting to the bridge, he wasn't even sure if he was going the right way, but he pretended he knew where he was going. He was rather surprised when he found himself in a huge room with many stations people were working at. There was a large screen in the front of the room with a view of tiny pinpoints of light that were stars splattered across the blackness that took up most of the view.   
  
He wandered his way down to the set of chairs ranged in front of this screen, finding an older man seated in the center chair while a younger one with brown hair and a square chin sat on his right.   
  
"I assume you'd be Grey Wyrs?" the older man stood, he was wearing a uniform of black pants, and a red shirt with a gold collar. He was somewhat bony and had white hair that was thinning on the top. "Welcome to my bridge. I would appreciate if you didn't bring drinks with you in future visits." The man was rewarded with a long look and a careful sip of coffee. "I am Captain Hyder, commander of this ship, this is my second in command, Koph Quinteen." Koph stood and nodded politely before holding out his had to Grey. The Chimera gave the hand a long look then looked at the man's face once more before finally taking it.   
  
"A pleasure," Koph said softly as he shook Grey's hand twice in a businesslike fashion before letting Grey's hand go. Grey wiped his hand on his pants and took another sip of his coffee, staring at Hyder and Koph over the rim of the cup. Silence fell between them.   
  
Hyder cleared his throat and gestured toward the screen, drawing Grey's attention to it. "Open the channel to Victory Station," he stated. A very large image of Dr. Katachi filled the screen and Grey sipped his coffee in apparent boredom once more.   
  
"Grey! You look well, I trust you're feeling as well as you look?" Katachi started with, he was greeted with the soft sound of Grey sipping his coffee, other than that it was silent on the bridge. Katachi cleared his throat and glanced around some, "Well, um... I just wanted to tell you that you're under orders to write down anything you remember and send it back to me."   
  
Grey slowly lowered his mug and moved his arm to tap his chin with his finger. "Hmm, how about 'No'?"   
  
Katachi was taken aback by that. "This order comes from the commander of Victory Station himself, Grey, you can't argue with it."   
  
"Who said I'm arguing?" Grey replied with a slight smile and sipped his drink once more, folding his other arm on his chest under the elbow of the hand holding the mug. "I'm flat out refusing."   
  
"Your pay will be docked because of this, Grey..." Katachi warned, though he looked worried.   
  
Grey smiled a little wider, "And this is supposed to bother me? What I think and remember is my business, not yours or the commander's and I consider that an infringement on my rights."   
  
Katachi's eye twitched and his jaw clenched. "You're a COPY! You have no rights!"   
  
"Well, that will just have to be changed, now won't it, dear Katachi?" Grey said mockingly and turned, heading out of the bridge.   
  
Katachi cursed softly, "In any case, Captain Hyder, the situation seems to have gotten stagnant, the enemy isn't making any more moves, in fact, it seems some of them have disappeared as if they'd never existed. I beg you to try and impress upon Grey Wyrs the importance of the situation?"   
  
"I will, sir," Hyder saluted and the screen returned to the starry expanse it had been before.   
*******


	12. Random Scene Theater!

Chapter Title : Random Scene Theater! 12  
  
(okay, I'm getting kinda tired of following the story one day at a time, so skip some time. ^_^ )  
  
  
  
Grey was bored, he had wandered around the ship for a while before finally ending up back in his room where Wryan was laying on his bed playing his annoying vidgame. He wandered around the room some before finally stopping at the counter on his side of the room and opening a drawer. A frown pulled at his lips as he looked upon a small box that was nestled inside the drawer. He'd certainly never seen it before and he knew it wasn't his. Wryan's vidgame volume was turned low but it was still on the edge of Grey's hearing and it was rather annoying, a human wouldn't have even noticed, but Grey wasn't fully human.  
  
He picked up the box, reading the label carefully before opening it to peer inside. The contents were square packets that seemed to contain some sort of ring that was easy to bend. Wryan glanced over at his room mate for a second, then yelped, sitting up and pressing pause on his game.  
  
"That's personal!" Wryan put his game aside and got off his bed to take the box away from Grey. He carefully closed it and was about to stuff it back into the drawer.  
  
"What ARE they?" Grey asked, holding one of the squares up, about to open it.  
  
"What?! You really don't KNOW?" Wryan asked, reaching out to snatch the packet from Grey's fingers as well. He did seem shocked though and that was why he missed getting it from the Chimera.  
  
"No, I don't."  
  
Wryan gaped, "How? They're essential to any bachelor's life if he wants to STAY a bachelor!" he pondered a moment, "Oh, of COURSE you don't know what they are. AI's don't do that sort of thing."  
  
Grey glared at the shorter man, "I thought we'd settled this long ago... I'M NOT A ROBOT!" He was about to punch Wryan in the head for implying that he wasn't human once more.  
  
Sadly, the redhead wasn't listening, too busy smirking over his little conclusion. He folded his arms on his chest and half turned away from Grey. "I'll tell you, but it's NOT my fault if your circuits fry because of it. It'd be a shame to waste all that money they spent on building you..." Wryan's smile had a glint that Grey recalled seeing before on a redhead, though the one he remembered had been female and could blow up towns whenever she got ticked.  
  
"I - am - not - a - robot!" Grey growled softly, making each word firm and clear.  
  
"How do you explain electrocuting people and throwing fire out of your hands? Your battery on the fritz or something?"  
  
"BOMB DI WIND!"  
  
Wryan slowly slid down the wall from where he'd hit and landed on his bed with a soft groan. "Okay, okay.." he croaked and rubbed the back of his head. "Anyway, they're supposed to keep girls from getting pregnant and transmitting diseases."  
  
Grey eyed his roommate skeptically, "And how does it do that?" He folded his arms on his chest and leaned his weight on one side. He was confused but he wasn't going to let Wryan know that.  
  
The redhead slowly climbed off his bed and snatched the packet Grey was holding still. He carefully opened it and unrolled the ring out to show that it was a tube of supple plastic. "You put it on your wank and it keeps juices from leaking." Wryan stuck his finger into the tube and made gestures with it.  
  
The Chimera stared in horror and finally pronounced his judgment upon the item of contraception. "That's SICK!" He turned and left the room to Wryan once more. He really didn't want to think about things like that.  
  
********  
  
He found himself stuck in the galley later that day. The tables had been rearranged so that there was a cleared space in the front of the room in which Amelia XXXIX was singing. There were a bunch of people listening to her, most were on their downshift. She was singing the song Grey had made a deal with her about. It really was a beautiful song and he enjoyed hearing it, he just dreaded having to talk about what little he remembered about his past.  
  
Amelia XXXIX's voice spiraled upwards and finally lit back down upon the final note of the song and she waited while Grey and her other audience members applauded. "And NOW, Grey Wyrs-san is going to tell us a story about long ago!" she announced much to his displeasure. He watched as Jiras pulled out a chair and set it in front of them room, Amelia XXXIX dashing over and grabbing his hands, pulling with all her strength. She had no hope of moving him, but he knew it would just embarrass both of them if he didn't do as told.  
  
"What exactly were you wanting me to tell you about?" Grey asked wearily.  
  
"Tell us how you got to look the way that you do now?" Amelia XXXIX exclaimed gleefully, she was sitting in the seat she uprooted Grey from.  
  
Grey went still, staring at her with fierceness that she was oblivious to. "I'd rather not-" he started to say but Wryan called from the back of the room.  
  
"Pansy! Tell us!"  
  
Amelia XXXIX sniffled, looking at him with wide watery eyes, as if seeing that would really change his mind. "No," he said firmly.  
  
"Coffee?" Jiras offered Grey a mug of it and the Chimera thankfully took it, sipped and thought for a moment. He could hear Wryan still calling him a pansy and some of the other more impressionable members of the crew doing the same.  
  
Grey lifted a hand, "I'll tell you about some of the Mazoku I defeated along side Lina Inverse, Gourry Gabriev and Amelia Wil Tessa De Seyruun."  
  
"Hey! Lina Inverse? Does that mean I'm related to her?" Wryan called loudly.  
  
"You've certainly got the personality for it," Grey said blandly, but I'd say Lina was far easier to get along with then you."  
  
Wryan folded his arms on his chest and glared, "What's that supposed to mean?"  
  
"You're abrasive, baka. Now shut up before I blast you for a fourth time." Wryan subsided to mutterings and the people around him prodded him until he shut up. Grey shut his eyes a moment, thinking back, trying to remember a suitable Mazoku. "It was around spring and I was on search for a cure, it had seemed promising, but so had the others and they'd turned out to be dead ends as well. I was in a port in Seyruun, one that happened to be where Seyruun was going to send out a fleet of ships to other countries along the coast that had been cut off to us by the Monster Barrier. During that time far out into the sea there was a pillar of light that could be seen from practically anywhere you went.  
  
"Of course, I knew that Amelia would be there, I'd heard about that long before I'd arrived." A smile touched Grey's lips as he imagined her as he'd seen her that day, his eyes still closed. He didn't see Amelia XXXIX swooning in her seat. "She'd definitely grown up over the last couple years since we'd been together to defeat Phibbrizo and Gaav. In one of the open air restaurants, I found Lina _TRYING_ to explain to Gourry the concept of the Monster Barrier, probably for the fourteenth time that day. He wasn't the brightest of guys but he was pretty good with a sword, not to mention he also had the Sword of Light. That was the only reason Lina hung around him at first, but after the Phibbrizo incident I think she realized how she really felt about him. It was obvious to us anyway.  
  
"Lina had apparently gotten a letter from some person named 'Filia'—" Grey opened his eyes and pondered a moment, "I'll have to find out what happened to her later," he stated then got back to the story, staring at his coffee instead of at the people watching him. Silence rang in the room around his words, weaving a pattern like lace, stringing its way around the attention of everyone in the room. Even Wryan was enraptured by what he could almost see in his mind as Grey spoke about how Filia turned out to be a golden dragon who was after Lina to represent the human race in the battle with the overworld Demon Beast Darkstar, which they found out had combined with the last of the ancient dragon race and another overworld god.  
  
"I'll skip the part about when we got separated after the first battle, that's...just too embarrassing to WANT to remember..." Grey stated and before anyone could protest, he continued, "Once again we met with Jillas who was still bent on killing us because he thought we'd killed Valgaav. Filia went temporarily nuts, I think, she leapt atop the orihalcon tank Jillas had created and told him to kill her because her race was the reason Valgaav had been the only ancient dragon left. Jillas was moved by her little performance and decided that she was going to be his new master..."  
  
Jiras beamed, happy that he'd been named after someone Zelgadis Graywords had once known. "...We attacked in waves as Lina, Filia, and Xelloss worked on gathering their power to send out the arrow that would destroy Darkstar before the other half could rejoin. We were almost too late though, the two halves joined just as Lina let loose the arrow from the Bow of Light..."  
  
Grey took the last gulp of his fifth cup of coffee and swallowed before stating, "That's it."  
  
"But- but- Did you go back to Seyruun with her?! Did you?" Amelia XXXIX bubbled, clasping her hands together and dancing around somewhat.  
  
"If you want to know anything more you'll have to ace the next five tests you have," Grey stated and stood, handing Jiras his empty cup and heading out of the room, aware that no one had left and they were all watching him. Wryan was near the door and stared as well, then the Chimera stepped out the door when it opened.  
  
Grey was aware that Wryan was behind him and sighed, "What is it now?" he didn't look at the redhead but kept walking.  
  
"Well, I was just wondering... do _I_ have the power to cast big spells like that?" Grey glanced back at Wryan to see the man poking his fingers together in a very demure pose.  
  
"You do, but you haven't been learning magic since you were seven like Lina was. She knew full well what some of her spells were capable of, she chose to use them recklessly. You, on the other hand, don't know what the real purpose of a Giga Slave is and wouldn't be able to control it." Grey started walking once his reply was finished and Wryan followed once more.  
  
"Well? What IS the real purpose?" Wryan demanded.  
  
Grey sighed, "It summons the Lord of Nightmares into the caster of the spell. The purpose of chaos is to become order, and order to become chaos. The spell disrupts order and calls upon the creator of Chaos. If the caster looses control of the spell then all order will return to chaos- ALL order."  
  
Wryan went pale. "You mean... if someone casts that spell like... on Gat22 then even out here..." he gulped, "we'd ALL be gone?" his answer was a solemn nod. "And she cast it HOW many times?!"  
  
"Quite a few as I recall," Grey replied and started on his way once more.  
  
"And.. _I_ could do that?" Wryan asked, sounding vaguely hopeful.  
  
"No." Grey stopped and turned to look firmly at Wryan, "Even if I KNEW the spell I wouldn't teach it to you." He turned again and stalked along the corridor.  
  
"Aww! C'mon! It's because I teased you about being a robot isn't it?!" Wryan called down the hall, "You don't have to be embarrassed about it! I've known a lot of AI's-"  
  
"FREEZE ARROW!"  
  
Grey stalked around a corner and out of sight. "C-c-c-o-o-l-l-d-d-d..." Wryan stuttered between clenched teeth as he shivered, his feet frozen to the floor, the ice piled halfway up his body as well. 


	13. Chapters 13 and 14, One Isn't Enough. ~_...

Aren't YOU guys lucky? I'm updating this story and going to see if I can think of any way to add more to it... XP Have fun yall!  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter Title : One isn't enough- (lucky chapter #13)  
  
Grey stalked off the ship and finally onto firm ground and took a happy breath of fresh air. He hadn't realized how much better fresh air tasted until he hadn't had it for a while. Above was clear blue sky, slightly sapphire colored but it was blue all the same. There was a hint of moisture in the smell of the air and Grey knew there would probably be rain later in the day. The place their ship landed in was paved with cement with buildings just a little way's off, to the right of the ship and on the left was an expanse of forest with leaves the color of emeralds. The air also smelled vaguely of oils, fuel, and smoke but the breeze kept the air moving in the area.  
  
Amelia XXXIX came out a few steps behind him and covered her nose, "What a horrible smell!" she squeaked around her hand. "What IS it?" she hurried up to Grey's side and clutched his arm with her other hand, "Do you know what it is?"  
  
"It's fresh air, a lot better for you then that recycled stuff," he took a deep breath and smiled some. "I'll be back in an hour-" he shook her off his arm and gathered his magic energy, "Rei wing!"  
  
Wryan stepped out and shaded his eyes, looking up as he saw Grey disappearing into the sky at a high rate of speed. "What the hell did he do? Sprout wings?"  
  
Amelia XXXIX shook her head, "No, he just said some weird words and shot up into the air! _I_ wanna do that!" She bounced around from foot to foot, calling up at the sky, "GREY!! Teach me to do that!!"  
  
"I don't think he can hear you, princess," Jiras murmured, squinting upwards before moving further out, "We should hurry, Princess, you have to get ready for your appointment with the ambassadors from Polu." Amelia XXXIX sighed sadly and settled down to follow Jiras toward the place where they would be able to freshen up. Wryan followed behind, knowing his mission, even if he really had never gotten around to telling Grey about what they were supposed to be doing on Ket.  
  
*******  
  
Grey circled the space port once, getting an idea of the layout of the place before darting off over the trees like a bullet, his speed was so great that the wind rippled through the bubble of compressed air around him and fluttered in his hair. He increased his speed even further, exercising his magic abilities. A speck appeared in his line of view and he dodged lower, the bird-like creature squawked as it was passed by something it had certainly never encountered before and tried to flap after Grey.  
  
The Chimera sorcerer grinned and sped up even more, feeling the wind tear at him through the compressed bubble created by the Rei Wing, other specks appeared in front of him and he dodged them as well, they were the same type of bird-like creature as before, but Grey was going too fast to get a good look at them. He curved to the right gently then, figuring he'd gone out far enough and started to slow himself, taking in more of the scenery. He had to admit to himself, he WAS having fun just goofing off for a while.  
  
The world seemed to be mostly trees with a spring here and there between the expanse of blue-green leaves that stretched across the landscape. Grey's slow curve brought him back to the space port and he spotted Jiras standing outside one of the buildings peering up at the sky, one hand shading his wrinkled somewhat pudgy pale face, the man hadn't seen much sunlight, that was for sure.  
  
Grey's landing was perfect, however, Jiras jumped out of his skin practically. "Ah!! Grey-san! You startled me!" the older man gasped for breath as he clutched his chest with one hand. After a moment of gasping for air and Grey simply standing there with his arms crossed and looking off into the distance, Jiras spoke again. "I need to tell you why we're here.. Wryan-san seems to have forgotten to inform you of that..."  
  
Grey wasn't paying attention though, he was watching a girl walking toward another building only a little ways away. She had chestnut brown hair that was curly and a few locks hung in her face, bouncing with a life of their own. She wore a smile and seemed happy about something. Her clothes were a simple dress of light blue and the fabric looked native, but it certainly wasn't a 'store bought' item.  
  
~*~  
  
She smiled down at him, "Oh, Zelgadis-love," she murmured, her voice full and beautiful as sunlight, "You'll be alright! Here, let me kiss it and make it better." She brushed a lock of curly hair out of her face before bending and placing a gentle kiss upon the little boy's knee.  
  
Zelgadis's smile returned at once, pain forgotten. He threw his arms around her neck and kissed her cheek. "I love you mommy!"  
  
~*~  
  
"GREY!" Jiras shouted, "Are you even listening to me?!"  
  
The Chimera blinked and shook his head, "Sorry?"  
  
Jiras cleared his throat and blinked a few times as well, "Are you crying?" Grey quickly rubbed his face with his sleeve.  
  
"No!" he snapped and glared, "Well? Get on with it?"  
  
The older man coughed once more, "We're here because the Princess Amelia XXXIX is the ambassador to negotiate peace with the Polu people, they technically aren't in our empire, but signing an agreement of peace with them will be beneficial to all of us."  
  
"And... she was sent?" Grey asked, as if not quite believing. He kept his opinions to himself though and gestured, "Let's get this over with."  
  
Jiras nodded and turned, headed back into the building where it was air conditioned, even if outside it wasn't all that hot- in Grey's opinion. He took one last look in the direction of the girl he'd seen before, but she was already gone.  
  
Inside the building, there was a front hall type room with stairs leading up to a balcony. "This is the building for important visitors," Jiras said.  
  
"I won't be sharing a room with Wryan again, will I?" Grey asked.  
  
"I'm afraid so," Jiras replied, "But will my lending another book to you make up for it?" the older man offered and cast a hopeful look over his shoulder to see Grey's slight smile and nod. He made his way up the wide staircase that was covered with deep red carpet. The same red carpet also extended down the halls that lead left and right from the top of the stairs. Jiras turned down the right hall and continued leading the way, to a door on the right side of the hall.  
  
The door was one that Zelgadis was used to, not one that opened on it's own, it had a brass handle and was made of wood. Grey liked it. Jiras led the way in and gestured around the medium sized sitting room. The room had the feeling that if space had allowed, it would have been larger, but it was confined to the small space it had.  
  
There were a few couches sprawling out in a social fashion around a fireplace at the back of the room and an expensive area rug lounged underneath the neutral white couches. The rug's patter was ornate, but not too busy to distract from the design of the room (Imagine Celtic knot pattern), it was light blue and white, in the center was the Seyruun royal crest.  
  
The walls were pristine white with the lower half painted a dark cyan with a gold chair rail marking the border. Here and there were pictures of ladies wearing big dresses or landscapes and the floor beneath the rug was a perfect white marble tile. Grey felt as if he were in the Seyruun palace somehow. On either side of the room was a door just like the one that had lead into the room.  
  
Jiras pointed to the left, "That'll be your and Wryan-san's room, the Princess's room is that one," he pointed at the right door. "I'll be across the hall, and the rest of her highness's advisors will be in the other rooms on this hall." Grey nodded and watched as the older man made his way out.  
  
With a sigh, Grey turned and headed toward the left door, placing his hand upon the knob and finding that the door hadn't latched all the way. He could hear voices from inside and immediately recognized one as Wryan's, the other- after a moment- turned out to be Katachi's.  
  
"-Talk much except for that one time when he told us about defeating Darkstar. Seems kinda far fetched, some of the things he described, but he said it like he'd really been there, that's for sure. I'm not sure though, he seems too wild to be of much help, Doc," Wryan was saying.  
  
"I understand, but you know we need SOME sort of ace to play in this game of life or death. What are your other observations?" Katachi asked, his voice sounded somewhat strange, as if he wasn't really there.  
  
Grey stood still, his ears picking up the words clearly when a normal human wouldn't have been able to hear more then murmuring. Wryan spoke again after a moment of pondering, "Well, he doesn't like it when I say he's an AI, can't take a joke obviously. He's really sensitive about his looks- won't even take off his shirt when I'm in the room. Oh.. and he has bad dreams- EVERY night." Wryan heaved a gusty sigh, "I swear, it's amazing that I've gotten ANY sleep at ALL in the past six months."  
  
"Has he ever said anything about what he's dreamed?" Katachi asked.  
  
"No, but he talks sometimes in his sleep. Says weird things that I can't understand. He says 'Shimita' a lot, that's for sure, and 'Xelloss'. I think that's a person because whenever he says that he thrashes around some. "One time though, he said something like 'No- Rezo!' and something else but that was in his weird language."  
  
There was silence for a moment, then Wryan spoke, "So.. do you know what any of it means, Doc?"  
  
Katachi sighed, "He obviously remembers his past, that's for certain. My research has turned up that he may be related to the ancient wise man 'Rezo' who was the 'Red Priest' and supposedly went insane in the last ten years of his life. I don't know anything about this Xelloss though, so I'll have to look that up further."  
  
"What about... you know?"  
  
Katachi sighed once more with an amused chuckle, "Nosy as ever, eh Wryan?" His tone turned serious, "The other experiments have been complete failures. Only one of them has gotten past the first stages before something goes wrong and they start sprouting extra arms and legs. I don't know what's going wrong with them, we're doing it exactly how we did before. One of them survived, but it's obviously insane. We've had to keep it locked away-" It was at that moment Grey backed away from the door, feeling his heart pounding in his chest.  
  
"They... they're trying to... make more of me..." was the thought that ran in circles in his mind. "Those Bastards!" In anger, he slammed the door open and stalked in to glare at Wryan and Katachi- who both cringed in fear.  
  
"Don't have the decency to talk about me when I'm around?" Grey asked in a dangerously calm voice, his eyes blazing in anger.  
  
"Grey- calm down- please- just tell us what you heard, we can explain!" Katachi tried to cover but he had doubts that Grey was going to just calm down.  
  
"Have you no morals?!" Grey ranted at the screen which displayed Katachi's face and some of his upper body in miniature. "Even in MY time mages asked permission before just copying someone! You certainly deserve having your 'experiments' fail because you have no ethics!"  
  
Katachi went pale and tried to cover once more, "I don't know what you're talking about!" His hands lifted into view and he made placating gestures.  
  
Wryan had taken Grey's moment of diverted attention to get across the room from the Chimera and scoot toward the door. "Digger Volt!" The lights in the entire building flickered for a moment, then Grey's almost slit eyes turned toward Wryan.  
  
The redhead froze in mid-creep and stared back at Grey. Then Grey turned and stalked back out the door of the room. A stray thought he had at that moment would certainly amuse him at a later time, but at that moment, he found it very annoying that he would be wishing that he were wearing a cloak just so it would flare dramatically as he left the room.  
  
Amelia XXXIX stepped out of her room wearing a stunning dress of dark blue with embroidered gold roses on the hem and around the low neck. "Why did the light's flicker?" she asked, completely oblivious to the fact that Grey was still very angry. "I almost messed up my lipstick because of that! I'll have to complain about it!" She glided toward the door, "oh, but right now I have that meeting," she turned flicking out a black silk fan and fluttering it in front of her chest. Once again she was wearing the locket. Her hair was styled up in braids with some of it falling free down her back. "I can only take one bodyguard into the room." She smiled, her lips looking like blood, "I choose Grey Wyrs-san," she preened a moment at her choice then turned, headed out the door and down the hall.  
  
Wryan heaved a sigh and sank to the floor the moment the door slammed closed behind Grey. "I thought I'd be dead for sure!"  
  
*******  
  
Chapter Title : Peace Talks (14)  
  
Grey stood back against the wall behind Amelia XXXIX while she sat at a table with some very strange looking people. They consisted of light green fuzz with muzzles instead of humanoid mouths. Their mouths were round and never closed, hanging from those black holes were a set of pearly tusks. Their eyes were simple black beads set into their heads just above the tusk. Their bodies were humanoid- at least they had two arms and two legs with three thick fingers. They wore kilts of the most violent color combinations ever thought of, they were an assault on the sight, and their odor was just as bad.  
  
Amelia XXXIX took it all in stride though and conducted herself in a manner much better then Grey would have thought she would. When the Polu's talked, they had tiny recorder-like devices on the table that translated. It appeared that only one recorder would work for one Polu, as if they were specially made.  
  
The room was rather small, decorated in dark red with a large table taking up the center of the room, there wasn't much room for anything else either. Grey felt somewhat squished behind Amelia XXXIX's high backed chair.  
  
"So glad you could come," one Polu stated, it's beady black eyes never seeming to look at anything, simply staring at everything in the room. "We find your bodyguard interesting."  
  
Amelia XXXIX smiled, "Yes, he's just wonderful," she stated happily, "Tells the most amazing stories."  
  
"Would you sell?" another of the three Polu in the room asked, it's translator outputting a different voice then that of the first.  
  
She shook her head, "I'm sorry, I can't. He belongs to himself."  
  
Grey eyed the three green creatures inhabiting the other side of the table from his ward. "Belongs self?" the first Polu asked, managing to look confused simply by tilting it's head to the side. "Borrow maybe?"  
  
Amelia XXXIX smiled sweetly, "We'll see, for now we have business and can talk about possibly letting you use him for a time afterwards." Grey almost breathed a sigh of relief, it was a good move on Amelia XXXIX's part, but he still didn't like that little bit of conversation. He feigned disinterest though and folded his arms on his chest, glaring off at the door or wall or something.  
  
"Yes," agreed the first Polu. "Peace will be beneficial to both people."  
  
Amelia XXXIX nodded and pulled forth an actual paper document which she passed across the table to the ambassadors. First one of the Polu seemed to read over the paper then the second, and finally the third. "We agree," the first stated without any of them having to even grumble a single word or make any gesture to communicate to each other. "Now we talk of guard."  
  
Amelia XXXIX watched as all three signed before she too signed, "What sort of mission were you thinking of?"  
  
It was at this moment that the Polu went still, "Protection," the third finally spoke up, it sounded light voiced, as if it were female. It's companions turned to look at the third and it bowed it's head. Amelia XXXIX seemed to pretend that the third hadn't spoken at all, instead looking at the other two.  
  
"We be attacked. Come. Go. No see. There. Gone." The first finally lifted it's hands and gestured in an obscure way, almost like something just popping in and out of existence in seconds. "Kill many important."  
  
Grey's attention was caught by this and he finally moved forward some, "What do they look like?" Amelia XXXIX gaped at him but made a gesture that seemed to communicate to the Polu that they were to have heard him.  
  
Nervously, the second spoke up, "Ugly," it stated, though Grey suspected that the translator had failed to find an appropriate word. "One look Human. Fur dark. Smile at us and go."  
  
Grey felt his eyes narrowing and his fist clenching, "Sounds... interesting," he stated coldly and a cruel smile touched his lips. "I think it'd be fun."  
  
Amelia XXXIX tapped her gloved fingers together nervously, "Well, you see, it isn't exactly up to me. You would have to send a petition to my father to request him." The Polu seemed disappointed but they nodded agreement.  
  
"We will take advantage peace and request," the first said and they all stood gracefully, towering over the table at over six feet. They bowed to the princess and she returned the bow then jabbed Grey's arm- hurting herself in the process. Reluctantly, he half bowed to them, his mind was on other things.  
  
"Xelloss..." he muttered softly. Hearing the name spoken aloud triggered another memory.  
  
~*~  
  
Zelgadis looked sadly at the bracelet he was holding in his hand, above him, his light spell was flickering and starting to dim. There was the sound of cloth tearing behind him and he spun around. Xelloss stood where before there had been nothing but the darkness of the deep cavern. The Mazoku smirked.  
  
"Time to die, dear Zelgadis," Xelloss stated, the gems on his cloak clasp and his staff lighting up as he amplified his magic. Zelgadis stood silently, knowing he had no chance of ever dodging the spell. He felt tired. Tired of life, and he'd certainly known that Xelloss would eventually turn on them. He just regretted the fact that he'd die when he'd been so close to another possibility of a cure.  
  
The spell struck him in the middle and sent him flying back against the far wall of the cavern, sending a reverberating echo though out the place. The force of his impact shook stalactites from the ceiling and the cavern started to collapse around him.  
  
~*~  
  
"GREY!" Amelia XXXIX shouted into his face and he realized that they were in the hall just in front of the door to their sitting room. "Are you even listening to me?"  
  
"No, I'm not," Grey stated calmly and entered the room, leaving the princess standing in a huff in the hall.  
  
"How RUDE!" she shouted and stomped after him. 


	14. Actually chapter 15.

New chapters to ME  
  
AN: sorry for this taking so long, I've kinda braindamaged for a while and haven't had any inspiration for anything. So it gets kinda dry here and there in this chapter/sorta chapter and also I skipped a lot of time because I was bored and wanted to get to the fun stuff and nothing interesting happened in the space I skipped. Nee.. have fun.  
  
  
  
******  
  
Grey sat on one of the beds in the room assigned to himself and Wryan, slowly taking apart the vid-screen he'd fried. He wasn't going to give up the chance to look at the guts of one of them first hand, despite his anger and confusion.  
  
Things had gotten strange. Katachi making another copy, Wryan being nosy, Amelia XXXIX being... herself, the possibility that Xelloss was still alive and now causing trouble. Slowly, he shook his head, this new world, this time, he was living in wasn't going to be easy. "I'm going to have more to do than I first thought... If only I had Lina." He briefly thought of teaching Wryan to use magic, but the thought frightened him. He needed someone more experienced with magic to fight a Mazoku like Xelloss. Wryan would end up killing himself.  
  
Speak of the devil- Wryan stepped into the room at just that moment, stopping in the doorway and watching Grey silently. "If you'd given him a chance, he would have explained-" he started, but stopped when Grey didn't look up. He waited, and still the chimera did not speak.  
  
Wryan lowered his gaze to his boots. "I mean.. you really don't look as bad as you think either. That 'AI' stuff, it was just a joke." He looked at Grey again, "You should lighten up some, you don't have to take things so seriously-"  
  
"If I don't, then no one will," Grey stated without looking up from his work, "Don't tell _me_ about lightening up. Someone tried that already- she probably got murdered by her own husband." Finally, he lifted his head to give the shorter man a long hard stare. "As for an explanation, I don't want one. It doesn't matter anyway. Not in the long run. There are Mazoku running around and killing people- probably to cause chaos and suffering. No one in this time has any way to kill them and the only one that I know of who could kill someone as powerful as the Mazoku leading this invasion is quite dead."  
  
Wryan shook his head. "Grey- listen to yourself, you're predicting DOOM for us all! We haven't killed ourselves or each other in all this time, surely we can fight off a bunch of demons if we all work together!"  
  
Grey began to laugh, softly at first, but growing louder as he continued. Involuntarily, Wryan took a step back. The laugh was frightening, not based in mirth, there was only madness behind it. "You fool. You really think that your little play toys you call weapons can kill a Mazoku?! They're ASTRAL energy! Nothing physical can hurt them. Only the Weapons of Light could do any damage to them, but all five of those are gone!"  
  
The redhead sighed, "Nevermind... no use talking you into sense," he stated and turned, leaving the room. Grey glared at his back.  
  
"Baka," he stated.  
  
****  
  
Chapter ..something....  
  
End of the trip.  
  
  
  
Grey sat alone in the cabin that he and Wryan shared on the ship. They were on their way once more, back toward Victory station where they would refuel and then head out toward the homeworld. Secretly, he was excited over the prospect of going to Seyruun, he didn't care that it had probably changed immensely, he would always call that world home. Not to forget that his previous body was being put on display in a museum somewhere in the capital, so that would probably mean that he could get to it. A smirk crossed his features as he thought about that, boy wouldn't THEY be surprised when he walked in?  
  
He shook his head, putting those vengeful thoughts aside in favor of his other plans. First he'd have to find Amelia's grave. Probably in the royal cemetery. Maybe even Lina's grave would be there too? That would certainly make things easier, but it wasn't likely he'd find anything. It had already been quite a long time and only because his body had been made of stone had they been able to clone him.  
  
The door opened, Grey glanced up to find Wryan. The redhead stared nervously at Grey a moment before coming in and flopping down on his bed. "Are you still mad at me?" Wryan asked softly, staring up at the ceiling. Grey idly compared Wryan and Lina, not much difference.  
  
He gave a sigh, "No," he stated, "I wasn't really that mad in the first place. It doesn't matter." Gray shifted on his bed, bringing his back off the wall and resting his arms on his raised knees.  
  
"I hate being trapped on ships," Wryan said rather suddenly, "They're so boring. I like places like that world we were just on.. with the trees and green stuff. I don't like cities either, even if I was born in one." He turned his head to look at his companion, his hands linked behind his head as he lay on the bed. "Is that crazy or what?"  
  
"Not at all," Grey replied calmly, "Never cared for cities myself."  
  
Wryan rolled onto his side, shoving himself up on one arm. "Where were you born? I mean.. your-" Grey waved a hand, cutting him off.  
  
"I'd actually prefer if you referred to me as the original," he said, "Not like Zelgadis can refute me on it, besides, he'd likely feel the same. I was born near Siraag, though I don't know if it's there anymore, haven't gotten that updated on things." He gave an amused snort, "Besides, Siraag was destroyed twice in my lifetime, another time just before my birth and then there was the time the demon beast Zanafaar attacked, which was way before my time."  
  
Once more Wryan moved, sitting cross legged on his bed and looking at Grey with interest. "Tell me about that?" he asked. "When I was little we learned that there was a really big tree once but it got destroyed. Does that have anything to do with it?"  
  
Grey gave a slight smile, "Yes, actually Flagoon does have something to do with Zanafaar. It happened a very long time ago when I first heard the story from... my grand father.." Grey glanced away a moment then continued, "The city was built to the north of where the tree was planted and it was a thriving city, it was the capital at one point in Seyruun's history.  
  
"A sorcerer lived in that area, he wasn't a very powerful sorcerer, just had the right tools to make mistakes. It was a project gone wrong that caused a rift between this plane of existence and the overworld to be created, and through that rift came Zanafaar. The demon beast wreaked havoc on the city, destroying it completely, but thankfully some got away to restart their lives. One of the wielders of Goron Nova, the sword of light, happened to be in the area, thankfully, and he destroyed the demon beast. But, the beast's miasma of chaos and terror still pervaded the land, so the swordsman planted a tree in the center of his battle field."  
  
Grey paused a moment to swallow and gather his thoughts once more, "A shrine maiden cast a healing spell on the tree, causing it to grow immediately and soak up the miasma, which was what kept the tree healthy. From then on the shrine maidens in Siraag took care of the tree, the city was rebuilt to the south of the tree, and life went on for a while longer."  
  
Wryan stared as the story came to a close and didn't immediately throw the story off for fable. Instead, he said, "Wow. How'd it get destroyed?"  
  
"It's late," Grey answered with, sliding off his bed and rooting in his drawer for his night clothes.  
  
The redhead frowned, "Ah- c'mon! Why don't you wanna tell me?"  
  
Finally, Grey turned toward Wryan, "Because I don't remember it all right now," he stated and hoped he believed that little lie. Before Wryan could complain any further, Grey went into the bathroom and washed up. That was ONE good thing about the future, water was warm on demand and didn't have to be purified before drinking- or at least HE didn't have to purify it.  
  
*****  
  
  
  
Wryan walked beside Grey as they made their way down one of the long halls of Victory Station, after twelve months together, their relationship was still going through some growing pains. Some would be an understatement though...  
  
"You're still mad at me aren't you?" Wryan asked after the silence had stretched for what seemed eternity. Grey cast the redhead a sour glance and said nothing. "Just cause I stole your clothes and locked you out of the room for an hour. Jeez! You're such a prude!" The redhead threw his hands in the air as they moved along, there were few people about and Wryan had mentioned they'd been called to a meeting. Grey and Wryan were slotted for a mission to the homeworld though, so they didn't have to go to it. It was still disturbing to not see anyone around.  
  
The Chimera, on the other hand, was silent because he could hear the pounding of feet coming down the hall. The foot falls were strange, almost like the being to which they belonged was much heavier than any normal person. Perhaps a robot?  
  
He heard shouts as well. Those shouts didn't seem happy. One voice stuck out above them all, but it wasn't the voice that caught his attention, it was the words. ~"Leave me alone!!"~ the voice screamed and sounded out of breath, it was male and hoarse, and Grey could tell that it belonged to someone younger than himself. The words were old, it was the language he could faintly remember speaking and couldn't consciously speak it now. It was odd to hear those words and it almost sent him into another flashback, but Wryan spoke, distracting him from his memories.  
  
Wryan sighed, "Great, he's loose again. If he's gotten this far then they're not likely to catch him all night!" he said to himself then looked at Grey. The Chimera's irises were shrunken to mere points in the whites and he stared ahead at the place where the fleeing person would likely be coming around the corner. "Hey, you alright?"  
  
A figure wearing nothing but shorts swerved around the corner just then and was headed straight toward the two. "Stop!!" Doctor Katachi yelled as he rounded the corner directly after the young man. What immediately caught Grey's attention was that the young man had silvery hair, lightly tinted blue skin and occasional darker stones embedding his skin.  
  
Grey spread his arms out and caught hold of the young man before he could get past and firmly kept him there. ~"Let me go! Let me go!"~ the young man sobbed in his language, pounding and tearing at Grey's arms, but he found he'd met his match when it came to strength.  
  
~"It's alright,"~ Grey said softly in the same language, keeping his firm but gentle hold. Katachi had come to a stop and watched in rapt attention.  
  
~"You- you understand me!"~ The young man lifted his face to look at Grey and gasped softly. ~"Who are you?"~ The boy became still, no longer fighting and stared at Gray's face in shock.  
  
Grey touched the boy's face, he could see himself reflected in his features as well as a hint of Amelia, ~"I am Zelgadis, your father."~  
  
The boy's reaction was violent, ~"I hate you!"~ he shouted and tried to hit Grey, but the Chimera's speed was more then that of his son's and the boy was forced to calm himself.  
  
~"You don't,"~ he said softly in return. The boy hung his head and allowed himself to be held against Grey's chest. ~"Tell me your name."~  
  
He swallowed, ~"Zelan."~ Grey snorted slightly in amusement.  
  
~"How did I know your mother would name you after me?"~  
  
Zelan lifted his head to look at his father, ~"Where is this? What's happened?"~ Tears threatened the boy's eyes as he stared up at Gray, hoping that he would be able to explain things.  
  
~"This place is called Victory Station. I'm sorry, but I suppose they found your original body and copied you. I am a copy as well, but it really doesn't matter, too much time has passed for it to make a difference if we consider ourselves the originals or not."~ Grey's words seemed to soothe the boy's fear, for he slowly stopped trembling and his heart slowed its rapid beating.  
  
~"You- won't leave me- will you?"~ Zelan whispered softly from where he had his head against Grey's chest, hugging his father.  
  
~"No."~ Grey sighed, then turned a glare at Katachi, switching languages, he snapped at the doctor, "How dare you do this?! You should have asked ME before you did this! I should have been around. Don't you realize how much you've scared him. Damn it. I should ring your damn neck for this!" Zelan half turned his head to cast an almost identical glare at the doctor as well, even if he didn't know what was being said, he could tell that Grey was mad. Switching languages once more, he gently pushed his son away from his chest and forced him to stand upright, ~"Alright now, lets get you some clothes."~ Zelan nodded and wiped his hand under his nose. ~"That's disgusting,"~ Grey stated.  
  
~"It's not like I've got anything else to wipe my nose on!"~ Zelan replied somewhat heatedly. The typical Graywords temper, just as Zelan possessed the family chin and hair, despite the material they were made of.  
  
~"You can always use the giant hanky,"~ Grey gestured at Katachi. Zelan grinned widely and stalked toward the doctor, who nervously took a step back but it was too late, Zelan had already gotten a hold on his coat and blew his nose noisily.  
  
Katachi looked absolutely disgusted while Grey stood with his arms crossed. "You told him to do that, didn't you?"  
  
Grey smirked slightly and there was no other answer to that question, "He needs clothes. That's not decent what he's wearing. Haven't you any morals? Besides, he could catch a cold like that."  
  
The doctor sighed, and watched as Zelan returned to his father's side and nervously rubbed his arms, he didn't like not being able to understand what was being said. "We tried to give him clothes but he refused to put them on."  
  
"Probably couldn't figure out HOW to, baka," Grey replied then cast a long look at Wryan who had amazingly been silent during the whole exchange.  
  
"You're going to teach him magic, aren't you?" Wryan asked accusingly, "and you wouldn't teach me." Once more, Grey smirked.  
  
~"What's he saying?"~ Zelan whispered nervously, holding his arms against his chest, hands on his upper arms.  
  
~"He's just complaining."~ Grey replied casually, his switching languages becoming a lot more easier the more he did it. He thought a moment then reached into his pocket, ~"I may have something..."~ he pulled a shirt out of his subspace pocket and handed it to Zelan, ~"Put this on. It'll do for now."~ The boy looked at the black cloth nervously then took it, under his father's watchful gaze, he managed to get the shirt on right, blushing faintly. Wryan and Katachi were gaping of course.  
  
"How the hell did you have a shirt in your pocket?!" Wryan demanded immediately.  
  
Katachi spoke up as well, almost running over Wryan, "That's magic isn't it?!"  
  
"Yeah," Grey replied with a smirk. He knew that those silly 'metal detectors' couldn't sense a dagger that was stored in subspace. It amused him.  
  
"Tell him his name is-" Katachi started to say but he was immediately interrupted by Grey.  
  
"My son's name is Zelan, he will not be called by anything else." Zelan blinked, looking from Katachi to Grey in confusion, he'd heard his name but couldn't understand anything else that had been said.  
  
"But-" Katachi started. He stopped and looked elsewhere.  
  
"Zelan and I have some things to talk about," Grey said then and gestured for his son to follow him as they continued just a little bit further down the hall to the elevator.  
  
********  
  
~"So... Lina and Gourry raised you with their daughter?"~ Grey asked, trying to get things straight in his head.  
  
Zelan nodded, ~"Yes. Lina said that mom died only a few years after I was born. She said that mom had been hurt by giving birth to me and it hadn't healed right." Zelan was curled up in the far corner of the bed, his back against the wall while his father paced back and forth in the small confines of the room. ~"She told me that I was a prince. I wanted to be with the rest of my family, so I went to the palace and they wouldn't let me in, so I started to fight them and even got into the palace...."~  
  
Grey finally came to crouch on the bed, ~"That was possibly the most bloody stupidest thing I've ever heard."~ But Grey crawled over the remaining distance between them and hugged Zelan gently.  
  
~"I was so confused when I woke up here. I thought I was dead. I didn't know what was going on."~ Zelan began to shake once more and leaned against Grey's chest.  
  
~"Shh, it's alright. I'm here now and I won't let them take advantage of you anymore."~ Grey soothed his son gently, smoothing the boy's hair. It turned out that his son was only about twelve or so and this somewhat upset Grey as well.  
  
~"You act a lot different then what Lina said you would."~ Zelan said softly into his father's chest, clutching the fabric of Grey's shirt. ~"Lina said you were really quiet and didn't touch people often."~ He put his arms around Grey to keep him from moving back.  
  
Grey sighed softly ~"It's because I don't remember everything yet. If I had remembered everything the moment I'd woken up, then I might have taken things quite differently."~  
  
Zelan looked up at his father's face, ~"So what're you going to do?"~ the boy asked softly.  
  
~"We're going to get you a little more up to date, then get some lunch."~ Gray moved off the bed, heading for the door. He was somewhat amused as he watched Zelan crawl off the bed in the borrowed shirt who's sleeves were too long and wouldn't stay folded up. The boy followed his father down the halls. ~"And we'll get some new clothes for you."~  
  
Grey led the way down the various halls and finally to the science department center where he caught hold of one of the scientists who didn't look to be doing anything. The scientist was a midsize dark haired woman and Grey almost reeled back in shock when she turned around. Blue eyes stared up at him from under short evenly trimmed dark violet bangs. "Yes?" she asked, even her voice sounded the same... She looked exactly like Sylphiel.  
  
"Ah-" Grey quickly collected his thoughts, "He doesn't know the current language. He'll cooperate now." The Sylphiel-look-alike woman turned her eyes toward Zelan as the boy was standing near his father, the sleeves of his shirt falling past his hands and making him look like an orphaned waif.  
  
"Of course!" she agreed quickly and brightly. "Right this way!" she swirled and with a bouncy step, headed toward a room off of the main labs, one that was only used on occasion, but was used enough for people to be grateful that it was there. They entered the room, finding it mostly empty except for the chair with its headset and the panel in the wall beside it.  
  
~"Just sit there,"~ Grey said to Zelan, gesturing at the chair and the boy obediently went towards it, sitting carefully and clasping the armrests with his fingers.  
  
"Oh, I wish you had been here when he first woke up. Things would have been much easier!" the woman said brightly and went to the panel beside the chair, dialing up the information to be transferred.  
  
Grey scowled somewhat, "I wish you people had asked me," he stated, "I don't appreciate unexpected surprises." She looked remorseful, so he left her alone on that score. "What's your name?" he asked instead.  
  
She smiled brightly, "I'm Sylfia," she replied as her fingers absently pressed the button to start the transfer.  
  
It was only for a second that Zelan closed his eyes, but once he opened them Gray spoke, "Didn't hurt?" The boy blinked a few times, recognizing the difference, but now he could understand what the words meant. Finally, he nodded. "Alright, let's go get clothes, then food." Zelan hopped out of the chair with his bare feet, making a loud thump. "Didn't Lina teach you not to do that?" he asked somewhat irritated but Zelan wasn't balked by his father's tone.  
  
"No.. She tried though!" he replied in the new language he'd learned.  
  
Gray sighed, moving onward, hearing the sound of Sylfia's giggle somewhere behind him, Zelan walking beside his father. "Good to know it wasn't her fault then," he replied sourly as they headed out of the science area. Katachi rounded a corner and came to a stop in their path, he was holding a thin file of printed papers in his hands.  
  
"Grey," he started to say but the Chimera gave him a look, he changed his sentence quickly, "Ah.. can he understand us yet?"  
  
Zelan glared, "Yes," he said firmly. "I can."  
  
Katachi stifled his laugh, "Sorry... he.. sounds just like you... ah, here's the file on your new assignment."  
  
"I'm taking him with me," Grey stated as he took the file, undisturbed by Katachi's assessment of his son's personality. As if Grey really didn't expect anything else from his son.  
  
Katachi gave a weary nod. "I figured you'd want to," the doctor stated and moved to go on his way as Gray and Zelan did the same. They came to an elevator and once it arrived, they stepped in.  
  
"So where're we going?" Zelan asked, trying out his new language some more as they rode down toward the first ring.  
  
Gray looked at the file's front cover, his lips pulling upward slightly, "Home," he said softly.  
  
*****  
  
Father and son sat at a table in the café restaurant that Grey had decided was good enough to return to. Zelan was busily slurping down his soup, alternating with his sandwich and mostly being about as disgusting an eater as Lina and Gourry ever were. Idly, Gray was amused by it, apparently eating like that wasn't genetic but a learned trait. In any case, he sat quietly, sipping his coffee and minding his own business as his son sat back finally and belched.  
  
"That's disgusting," Gray stated with a hard look from over his cup. "You'll show some manners from now on."  
  
Zelan blinked then looked down, kicking his feet some as he waited for his father to finish his coffee. The place was quiet, a general murmur the only sounds going on in the café. There were a few aliens, which Zelan regarded with interested, and who watched him in the same light, the rest of the people in the café were humans, straight and pure who tried their hardest not to stare at the two strangers in the far corner. Finally, Zelan turned back toward his father and spoke, "You really are anti-social," he stated.  
  
Grey eyed Zelan again, "And you're being rude," he reminded. Zelan fell into silence once more and the door swished open to admit a new customer.  
  
"Ah!" an overly excited voice exclaimed and Grey lifted his eyes from the file he had open on the table in front of him directing his gaze toward the door, finding Amelia XXXIX standing there in a pair of pants and a shirt, as if she were trying to emulate her predecessor. Wryan entered just behind her, looking somewhat worn. "THERE you are, Gray!" the princess exclaimed once more and came over to their table to eye Zelan. "Who's this?"  
  
"My son," Gray stated blandly, as if he really wasn't that excited to see the princess. Wryan made his way over and leaned against the bench Zelan was sitting on.  
  
"Hey! You look like Lina!" Zelan stated, pointing at Wryan.  
  
The redhead lifted his brows, "Ah, he speaks the language now. And he's dressed, that's an improvement." He snirked at Gray somewhat.  
  
Amelia XXXIX interrupted that exchange though, by sitting down next to Gray and forcing him to make room for her on the bench. "Wow. I didn't know you had a son! Who's his mother?" she asked, looking somewhat predatorily which was disturbing to the Chimera. Zelan moved over and Wryan took a seat as well. The silence that had descended on the room revived when the two new comers were seated.  
  
"None of your business," Gray replied to the princess. She'd figure it out eventually, he just didn't want to admit that he'd had an affair with one of the royal family. Belatedly, he switched languages and firmly stated to Zelan, ~"Don't talk about your mother to anyone."~  
  
The boy would have asked why except that Amelia XXXIX turned her attention toward him and began asking questions. "So who raised you?" she tried another track.  
  
"Lina Inverse-Gabriev and her husband. I lived with their daughter and Lina was going to have baby when I got killed..." He looked down at the table in shame.  
  
Amelia XXXIX blinked, "What'd you DO?" she asked, leaning forward. "I thought Grey couldn't be killed by anything now and stuff. Aren't you the same?"  
  
Zelan blushed deeply but shoved his embarrassment aside to reply, "Nothing NORMAL can kill me," he stated firmly, "It was a Mazoku that did it. Just popped out of nowhere and blasted me!" He pouted somewhat, "If I ever see that bas-" he stopped when he caught his father's glare, "Meanie-head," he amended, "I'll rip him to shreds." He saw his father's approving nod.  
  
The princess gave a soft, "Oh," blinking a few times, "do you know why?" she asked finally and Zelan shook his head.  
  
Wryan finally shook his head and ignored the two youngsters in favor of looking at Grey, "So, you gotten through that file yet?" he asked the Chimera and was answered with a slight nod. Wryan supposed Grey would want to talk about it later, so he dropped the subject in favor of getting something to eat.  
  
****  
  
  
  
Grey withdrew from the general conversation into his own little world, minding his own business and re-reading some parts of the file. They were going to the homeworld, Seyruun, returning the princess to her father and being assigned to protect the king. Katachi was coming on this trip though it didn't state what his job was. Grey figured it was to watch his two projects. It was annoying, but Grey would have to put up with it.  
  
Of course, Grey had his own plans upon reaching Seyruun, which would be a journey of eight months in real time. He lifted his coffee cup to take a sip and hide his smile.  
  
****** 


	15. Chaps 16-17, aren't you happy?!

New chapter. Or something.. maybe it's chapter 16.  
  
Chapter name : The Arrival (yeah, I skipped 8 months, so kill me!)  
  
Grey had to admit, the change was drastic. No longer was the memory of a beautiful land with expansive forests and towns dotting the land here and there correct. Now, the entire world was one giant city. The sky was gray, the nights starless, and every moment was filled with the sound of roaring automobiles and people talking, cursing, and just noise in general. It was startling, but he didn't let it show. Zelan tried his hardest not to stare at everything and emulate his father by keeping his eyes straight ahead and face blank.  
  
They had come to the planet in their ship but had to dock at another station that orbited the world, they boarded another much smaller ship and then headed to land. Entry was somewhat rough but Zelan clung to his seat and pretended to be as calm and collected as his father but his knuckles were white. Amelia XXXIX was complaining up somewhere around the front of the shuttle, Katachi was a shade of green in the middle, and Wryan was playing his vidgame from his seat near the rear hatch where they had entered, and that was where Grey had chosen to sit as well.  
  
The landing went fine and Zelan was glad to get off the shuttle, but he gagged on the first breath he took of the air outside. Amelia XXXIX exited hurriedly to take a running leap onto a tall man with blonde hair. "DADDY!!" she said brightly and the man, though happy to see his daughter peered curiously at Gray and Zelan.  
  
"So, here they are," he said proudly. "I've heard a lot about you and your past. It's a pleasure to have you here!"  
  
Gray gave a slight nod of his head. "With all due respect, it isn't safe to be in the open like this," he stated, cutting off further pleasantries.  
  
Katachi made his way up behind Gray and bowed to the king. "We could talk more on the way to the palace," the doctor suggested, finally getting the king to move back toward the car that would take them to the palace.  
  
After they had piled into it, Zelan taking a seat next to his father and the princess next to hers but on Gray's other side. "Gray-san, you do realize the import of your assignment-?" the king started.  
  
"Of course," Gray stated, his expression closed. Amelia XXXIX had placed her hand on his knee. He brushed it off with a flick of his hand.  
  
The king smiled brightly, his face was smooth, it was easier to imagine him as Amelia XXXIX's father than Prince Phil, but he still wasn't a young man. "Right," he stated, "And you can keep secrets too, I hope?"  
  
Grey gave the king a long look without answering that question. "I will be allowed access to the royal cemetery?" he asked instead.  
  
Immediately the king nodded, "Of course! I assume you might have ..friends there."  
  
"Is Lina Inverse buried there?" he asked as well, just to keep from wasting his time looking. Sadly, the king shook his head. Grey dropped the subject. "You're aware of the threat in the Polu's area?" he asked instead.  
  
Once more, the King shook his head, "I haven't heard of anything but stories that ghosts have popped up and scared some of them to death. It's rather tragic, but they're flighty creatures, scared of a lot of things."  
  
Gray let that subject drop. The king may have a right to not believe in Mazoku, but convincing him of the danger wasn't going to happen. Instead, it would just have to come and 'scare' him to death, but, that was Gray's job, to see that they DIDN'T. "I wish the need for you wasn't so great, but space pirates have been trying to kill me recently. Probably to take the throne under some misguided idea that the king actually holds power in the government, but the world would still be thrown into chaos if I were to die. My people love me!"  
  
The princess had replaces her hand on Gray's knee and he brushed it off once more, crossing his legs. Thankfully, they had arrived at the palace and had to make a dash through the rain that had started to the front doors of the palace. Grey asked one final innocent seeming question, "Do you have anything from Philionel's reign?"  
  
"All we have is that locket my daughter is wearing and she dug it out of the vault some time ago," the king replied with and they moved on through the halls.  
  
****  
  
Gray stood in his room, he had one to himself for once, though Zelan was currently in the expencively furnished room with him. "Zel," he said, turning toward his son. "I'm probably going to do something that the people here will be upset about," he stated, coming to place his hands on the boy's shoulders. "You know how to use a sword, you've got some spells, right?" Zelan nodded, "If I disappear somewhere, you guard the king."  
  
Zelan blinked a few times, "You... really think I can?" he asked nervously.  
  
"Of course you can," Gray replied, giving his son a smile, "You stormed the castle like a one man army, you can guard the king. You'll have Wryan too, so you won't be alone, but if Mazoku attack, remember to use the Rah Tilt on them. That's your best bet." Zelan nodded once more.  
  
"What're you going to do?"  
  
Grey smiled almost seeming feral, "Reclaim what's mine," he stated firmly.  
  
*****  
  
Grey stood in the gloomy street of downtown Seyruun capital. It was mid afternoon but the buildings were so tall in this area of the city that they blocked out the sun. He stared at a sign set out in front of one of those tall buildings, the hood of his jacket pulled low over his face but still people were giving him odd looks. The sign was advertising about an exhibit of the body of Zelgadis Graywords. It was on show for the week. Grey noted that there weren't that many people headed into the museum and most seemed to be old men and women who were history buffs.  
  
Grey pressed his lips together and stalked toward the wide doors of the building the sign was standing out in front of. He'd left Zelan with Wryan, Katachi was out somewhere doing work of some sort that the doctor still hadn't mentioned the purpose of. Amelia XXXIX was with her father and they were being guarded by Zelan and Wryan, which was fine, Grey figured he needed a rest from Amelia XXXIX's obvious flirts and attempts to get his attention. It was disgusting. She was more the age of his son than Grey's and his heart belonged to someone else.  
  
He hated the world as it was now. Everything was just like his name: gray. Everything was paved and the only plants in sight were inside the windows of houses. Of course, the houses were all stacked up on top of each other. The sun barely shone through the clouds of smoke that hung in the air like a curtain.  
  
Once inside, though, the air was much thinner and he could breath easier. An amazing thing called 'air filters' made this possible. He walked between the various exhibits, toward the sign that pointed the way toward the place where the body was being displayed. His hand dropped to his pocket, hiding his rocky fingers inside it.  
  
Inside the room, Grey found his old body was lain out in the middle of the room, but it was protected by a plasti-glass case. The cloak had not decomposed, due to the spatial pocket of holding on it, the same with the pants pockets and a small area around them, the shirt was gone, however, and the belt was just strips that couldn't stand against a baby's tugging. The boots were gone.  
  
He pushed his way past the old people, there were about fifteen in the room, sixteen if one were to count Grey and the person reading out a prepared speech about Zelgadis's life. Grey listened for a moment, laughing softly at all the things that they had completely wrong, but inwardly he was shocked at how they had managed to get as much of the information correct. He moved forward once more, ducking under the velvet rope that kept people back from the display. Taking a moment, he touched the glass then balled his hand into a fist.  
  
"Hey- get away from that-" but it was too late, the plasti-glass shattered under Grey's relatively gentle strike. Shoving the remaining pieces of glass aside heedlessly, he reached out for the ruby clasp on the body's cloak and stopped, a flash of memory startling him.  
  
~*~  
  
Zelgadis looked up from the bracelet he was holding, and spun around. He was just in time to have the spell hit him full in the chest. It struck him hard, blasting through the rock layer and all the way through to his back. Within seconds, he found himself pinned to the wall and clutching the bracelet Amelia gave him long ago.  
  
~*~  
  
Grey shook his head slightly and continued the looting of his old body, taking the clasp, he stuffed it into his pocket. Continuing, he untied the cloak and carefully pulled it out from under the body. Folding it over one arm, he turned to find a couple of security guards standing there with tazers. The people who'd come to see the body hadn't left, instead, they watched in fascination.  
  
"You're violating the law-"  
  
"How? I'm only reclaiming what's mine," Grey replied, cutting into the security guard's speech.  
  
"Return the cloak!" the other one commanded and Grey smirked.  
  
"Alright, give me a moment then," he held the ripped and bloody cloak up like a magician would, turning it this way and that before muttering a soft command. The cloak shimmered faintly, then things started falling out of it. Mostly old books of magic, interesting magical items, loose change and anything else that one could imagine Zelgadis carrying around with him, that including all sorts of weapons and poisons.  
  
Grey tossed the cloak at the security guards. "There you go. You can have that back, not like it's in fashion anymore, besides, it's all bloody." He crouched and started going through the huge pile of things, stuffing most of the weapons into his pockets. He had his head bowed, his hood still pulled low.  
  
"You can't take that stuff!" one of the shocked security guards whined.  
  
Grey slowly stood, reached back, and pulled out his old sword then flipped his head, causing his hood to fall back. "I can and I will. You have no idea how long I spent searching for some of this stuff and I'd rather not loose it to a bunch of buffoons like you. Now shut up and leave me alone." He turned around and removed the scabbard from the old rotted belt and replaced the sword in it, lifting it up, he carefully positioned it and slipped it into his pocket as well. It completely disappeared to the amazement of those watching.  
  
"T- tell us, Zelgadis-san, tell us about what killed you?" one bold old man spoke up. He got a long cold look from the Chimera but no other answer.  
  
"You don't know, do you?" said another person, he was angry about his viewing of the body being disturbed. "That must mean you're a fake."  
  
"No. I'd just rather not think about it," he stated and went back to pulling a few things out of the remaining pile. He realized that he had an entire bag of gold. ~"I forgot about this.."~ he mumbled, dropping the bag back to the floor and turning toward the body to dig into it's pockets. The bag tipped over, the ties on it coming undone and spilling gold onto the floor. He pulled out a bunch of other weapons and stuffed them into his pockets, dumping the rest of the things he had in them onto the floor as well. Finally, he turned, climbing under the silk rope once more and paused, giving a smile, though it didn't reach his eyes, "You can call that junk donations," he stated and left, pulling his hood up once more.  
  
*****  
  
His theft had reached the news by that evening and Amelia XXXIX was outraged, the king simply found it amusing. "How could you just- walk in there like that?!" she demanded at the dinner table at which they sat Zelan looking proud of himself after his first time being in charge. Wryan was sporting a new bruise and seemed to have gotten the idea that Zelan wasn't going to take any crap from him while his father was gone. Of Katachi, there had been no word for the past two weeks.  
  
The princess finally grew tired of ranting and getting no answer, so she became silent and pouty, perhaps she was more upset at the fact that Gray had left her. He hoped so. He'd been through his things and found nothing that had once been part of Amelia, so, it was back to square one on that search, but the trip hadn't been wasted. He'd reclaimed a lot of things he kept finding himself wishing for over the last year and a half of his existence in this time. At least he had his old sword back. An Astral Vine spell was a lot more powerful than the silly lazer light guns and such they had now. He'd even taught the spell to his son and now the boy kept a sword of his own strapped to his hip at all times. Of course, everyone else thought he was crazy for it, but they didn't know the power of magic.  
  
After dinner, he supposedly went to bed, though he was actually preparing to head out into the cemetery for another bout of robbery. He knew very well he was digging himself deep with the new stunt he planned, but he'd already searched the entire palace for something of Amelia's body and all he'd found was some paintings of her and her husband.  
  
And an old photo.  
  
Grey lay on his bed with the table lamp on, in his room, listening to the rain outside the window. He pulled the picture out, staring with hatred at the man who had dared marry his beloved. Finally, his eyes trailed down to the paled face and sunken features of Amelia. His heart ached to see her like that. She was sick, and broken- or was she. A spark of her old fire still resided in her eyes, a spark that was guarded against the intrusions of her wicked husband. Grey put the picture back into his pocket and got up, looking at the clock on the wall.  
  
Midnight. It was time to move out. He grabbed his cloak, turned off the lamp and paused a moment to let his eyes adjust. Finally, he opened his window, crept out, then cast a reverse spell on it to lock it once more. He held himself against the window for a moment as the rain battered against his body. "Rei wing," he mumbled softly and launched off the side of the building. His spell caught him in the air and he glided lower to the ground and out of the main palace walls.  
  
The cemetery wasn't well guarded. No one expected people to be looting the graves of royalty... or perhaps the graveyard WAS well guarded, against people coming in from the ground. But Grey glided in from the air, landing carefully and making his way along the tomb stones. He'd been here a week ago, bringing flowers to Amelia's place of rest, setting them at the base of her stone. Beside her was her husband's grave, he'd spat on that one and walked across it on his way out. Now, he moved among the silent stones in the pouring rain, his light spell held low against his chest to hide the light but give him something to see by.  
  
He came to a stop once he reached his destination. Crouching, he let his light go, placing his hand on the muddy ground. Mumbling his next spell, he felt the earth beneath him tremble slightly in response, then, a hole opened up before him, about six feet deep. He hoped he hadn't gone too far down but climbed into the hole anyway, bringing his lighting spell with him. The rain was proving to be a problem now. First it had provided him cover, but now it was filling the hole with mud and he almost frantically searched the bottom of the hole with his fingers, finally casting his spell again and digging the tunnel another foot deeper.  
  
Idly, the back of his mind pointed out to him that they may not have buried Amelia here at all. Grey's stomach clenched at that thought and he dug another foot deeper. His fingers touched something hard, it wasn't mud. Frantically, he dug at it, but found that it was only a piece of rock. "Damn it!" he cursed bitterly and sat back on his muddy heels, soaked to the bone and on a fruitless search for something that likely wasn't even there anymore. He scowled, one hand playing in the mud at his side.  
  
Something brushed his hand and he looked down at it, finding it to be a piece of cloth.. no, a bag, a small bag that seemed empty. He picked it up carefully, looking it over. It had the royal crest embroidered on it and under that, it said, "To My Love".  
  
With shaking hands, he climbed out of the hole, stuffing the bag into his pocket and taking one last look at Amelia's grave stone, upon which it said "So I lived and so I died, With the light of Justice by my side, My heart was pure, intentions bold, I Loved for Life and Lived for Love. And for my sacrifice, I'll live again with my soul mate." Had she known? He smiled, "So we'll live again," he mumbled softly, blowing a somewhat muddy kiss toward the hole before casting another Rei Wing and gliding straight upwards and on out towards his hiding place where he would begin work.  
  
*****  
  
Katachi stood beside the king, Wryan, Amelia XXXIX, and Zelan, frowning. "Zelan," he said softly, "You have to tell us where your father went." The early morning sunlight shafted between the clouds and cast a pale gray glow upon the opened grave before which they stood. There was a bunch of battered flowers on the tomb stone of Amelia Wil Tessa De Seyruun, and no sign of where the dirt from her grave had been moved. There wouldn't have been anything in the grave anyway, and the rain had been so hard that the hole was half filled with mud.  
  
The boy gave a smile, closing his eyes. "I wouldn't even if I knew," he stated, "Everyone will be happy when he comes back, I sure though. Until then I'll do his job and protect the king. I'm capable of it. I _did_ storm this same palace as a one man army, after all," he smirked.  
  
****  
  
The room was small, with pieces of cloth covered furniture packed in, it was someone's attic, but Grey didn't care. He'd needed somewhere dry to warm up in and sleep for a while. But the moment he'd gotten in, he found something to clean his hands off with and took out the bag, mumbling the spell to release it's lock on the subspace pocket inside. Dumping the contents out on the cloth covered sofa before him, he found it was a lock of hair, the other bracelet of Amelia's set, and a carefully folded note.  
  
Dear Zelgadis,  
  
I write this as I lay dying, and though I somehow know you're dead, it makes me feel better to just write to you. I hope you can read this, wherever you are.  
  
I just wanted to tell you that I love you. I have always and will always. I may die now, but I know you can use this to make me your own, should you ever find it. I love you.  
  
Amelia  
  
Grey sat in silence, tears flowing down his face as he read the letter once more and finally picked up the lock of hair, touching it's soft sable strands carefully. He would maker her his own. She would belong to him and no other.  
  
*****  
  
  
  
Chapter 17?  
  
Amelia  
  
  
  
Weak moonlight filtered in through the dirty slatted window shades that covered the just as dirty windows of the room. They were lined up on one wall only and the dim outlines of bulky objects could be seen in the darkness that engulfed the room.  
  
The dim light sparkled off what looked like a mass of silvery wires that was attached to a body sitting with its head and arms on a desk amidst piles of papers and various flasks. After a moment's notice, it was obvious that this body isn't dead, but merely asleep.  
  
A figure slowly stepped forward, closer to the desk, light glistening off the layer of slimy liquid that dripped to the floor like syrup. A hand reached out, the fingers thin, the palm small and delicate, a woman's hand. Gently, she touched the strands of wire like hair, caressing it as if it were something she'd missed for a long time.  
  
Her hand left a slimy trail in his hair as she moved her hand down to his shoulder and gently touched him. Beneath the shirt, she could feel rock hard flesh with bumps here and there.  
  
Her pale lips slowly moved, ~"Zel- gad- is-"~ she whispered, moving closer. ~"Zelgadis..."~ she said once more, but more urgently. She shook his shoulder gently at first but her touch grew more rough when he didn't respond. ~"Zelgadis!"~  
  
With a jerk, he sat up and blinked hazily around, his gaze finally settling on the woman. Her form was covered only in the syrupy substance which she had floated in for the past week. Grey's mind cleared and he slowly stood, reaching out and roughly pulling the woman against him.  
  
Grey felt tired, but it paled in the joy that spread through his veins. Her arms were around him, her fingers clutching his back. ~"Amelia,"~ he whispered and hugged her close, uncaring of the fact that his clothes were now just as slimy as she was.  
  
Amelia's tears made tracks down her face as she held him in return. ~"Zelgadis..."~  
  
~"I promised you, Amelia, I would have you no matter how long it took or what I had to do. You may be a copy, but so am I and there's nothing to keep us apart anymore,"~ Grey's words echoed through the silence of the room and he could feel Amelia trembling against him. ~"I love you."~  
  
Amelia lifted her head to look up at him, the moonlight shining over his shoulder and into her watery eyes. ~"Zelgadis... Thank you. I knew you would come."~  
  
~"Shh,"~ he murmured softly, lifting his hand to wipe some of the syrup off her face. ~"Enough talking for now."~  
  
~"But..."~ she started to say but he placed a finger over her lips.  
  
Grey's smile was soft as the human flesh he didn't have. ~"Enough,"~ he whispered. Moving closer in a quick sweep, he placed his lips upon hers. For a moment, she was startled, but gladly returned the kiss.  
  
The light suddenly turned bright, shining through the slats of the shades. "Grey Wyrs, we have you surrounded, come out with your hands up," a voice boomed from outside.  
  
Grey half turned, lifting a hand to shade his eyes, Amelia lifted a hand as well. ~"What's going on, Zel?"~ she asked softly, clutching his waist with one arm.  
  
~"I'm...slightly in trouble."~ He cast a wane smile down at her. ~"How do you think I got what I needed to copy you?"~ Amelia blinked a few times and started to laugh. ~"Yeah..."~ he murmured softly. ~"Lets get you cleaned up."~ He moved away from her then, heading past some of the bulky objects in the room. They turned out to be old chairs and equipment for making copies. The room was now brightly lit by the intense white light coming in from the windows.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
"Sir- he's got someone in there with him," the commander of the peace keeping force stated to the blonde man beside him. "Take a look." The balding muscled man handed the sights over to Katachi and waited while the doctor took a long look.  
  
"He.... He said he didn't know how to do it!" Katachi stated completely out of the blue, gaping at what he saw. "Captain, that woman is Princess Amelia- the FIRST Princess Amelia in the Seyruun family!" The scientist stood in awe. He hadn't thought that Grey had actually found anything in the grave, but apparently he had, or can one make copies out of jewelry?  
  
Katachi watched as Grey returned from somewhere in the back room and gently worked on drying the woman off. They seemed to be laughing about something, Grey's eyes sparkled as he gazed at the woman. After a moment more, he displayed a quaint but lovely dress to her and she threw her arms around Grey, kissing his lips, a kiss that he seemed all too happy to return. In fact, Grey went so far as to pin her against the desk. It was at that moment that Katachi lowered the spy sight from his eye.  
  
The commander looked at the doctor in confusion. "Something wrong?"  
  
"So it WAS true... She did have a lover, that means that Zelan is... Gods... that's somewhat disturbing." Katachi had a brief flash of Zelan's face. Thankfully the boy had been convinced to stay and guard the king while Wryan guarded Amelia XXXIX.  
  
"What ARE you talking about?" the captain snapped and snatched the scope from the doctor's hands before he could protest. "Damn! They're gone... Wait-" The front door opened slowly and Grey stepped out, carrying the woman in his arms. She was dressed in the light blue dress with pink trim on the sleeves, hem, and neck. Her hair was still wet looking and somewhat messy as if it had been a quick drying job. He slowly paced forward, under the watchful eyes of the peace keeping force that was arranged around the small house.  
  
The commander lifted his megaphone to his lips and stated firmly. "Let the hostage go, Grey Wyrs. There's no need for this." Amelia and Grey exchanged a glance before he began to laugh.  
  
~"They told me to put the 'hostage' down,"~ he told her, sniffling somewhat as he continued forward. Looking around, he spotted Katachi and called, "Katachi, come here." The blonde doctor slowly made his way forward.  
  
"Grey, there's no need for this..." the doctor started to say.  
  
"You should be happy. She has the ability to help against Mazoku," Grey retorted quickly and gently placed Amelia's feet on the ground but held her against him with one arm, his other hand had its fingers laced with hers.  
  
Katachi took in the sight of the two, then looked toward the commander. "You could have asked me about it. I could have helped you!" the doctor hissed.  
  
Grey smirked slightly in return. "I didn't want anyone seeing her before I did."  
  
The scientist gave a sigh. "You're in big trouble, you know, for looting the royal cemetery... But of course you don't care about that. Let me see if I can get the princess to pardon you." He turned and hurried away to the expensive hover car in which Wryan and Amelia XXXIX waited.  
  
~"So what's going on?"~ Amelia asked softly of her love, looking up at his hard expression.  
  
Grey looked down at her and gave a slight smile, ~"They're pretty pissed. I won't let them take you from me though."~  
  
She gave a giggle, ~"Let them try! They'll get a face full of the Fists of Justice!"~ And they both laughed. Katachi soon returned with Amelia XXXIX in toe, as well as Wryan.  
  
The princess glided forward and gave a slight bow, "Greetings, great ancestor," she said calmly. "It is a privilege to meet the one who I am named after. I'm sure that my father will do his best to make your stay in our time a memorable one."  
  
~"What is she saying?"~ Amelia whispered to Grey.  
  
~"A lot of nothing." Amelia glared and jabbed him with her finger in just the right spot to make him flinch. "She's welcoming you and says she's glad to meet you. She's Amelia XXXIX, distantly named after you. Your father had to remarry and had a son who became the next king and whatnot. They've cloned our son, by the way. How did I know you'd name whatever kid you had after me?"~  
  
Amelia's eyes lit up and she glomped onto Grey, kissing his face boldly, ~"I want to see my baby!" she said, "I didn't get to hold him much, I was so tired after I gave birth, he weighed a lot. I want to see him! where is he?!"~  
  
Grey carefully restrained his beloved's enthusiasm. ~"He's not here, but when we go back to the palace he should be there."~ Amelia glowered and her namesake did as well. "She wants to see the palace," he lied, "She's excited about everything that's changed and wants to see it all."  
  
Amelia XXXIX nodded carefully. "Right then, punishment for your indiscretion can wait until she has been satisfied." With that, she turned, her expression going dark as soon as her back was toward them and led the way toward the armored car that awaited them.  
  
Once they were settled in the circular seating of the hovering vehicle, Amelia XXXIX was ready to start into her speech about the wonders of the new age. The wind was stolen from her sails when she looked over to find her predecessor and Grey both asleep, arms wrapped around each other. Katachi gently patted Amelia XXXIX's hand. "You'll be able to talk to her once she's been given the language. The young princess scowled and hunched back in her seat, arms folded on her chest, pouting. Wryan sat watching everything in silence, quite amused by it all in actuality.  
  
****  
  
~"Zelan!!!"~ a voice rang out over the palace grounds, it was a voice that none had heard in almost ten thousand years, but it returned with full vitality that it had lacked in the last few years of its previous life. The voice was that of Amelia Wil Tessa De Seyruun as she sprang out of the armored car and into the light of early morning. The king and his current body guard were standing on the front steps of the palace, awaiting Amelia XXXIX's return.  
  
Directly after the call by the first Amelia, her namesake burst from the car, "Daddy!" and in unison, they glomped their chosen males. Zelan was knocked clear over by his mother while the king faired better with his daughter.  
  
~"Oh my baby, I love you!"~ Amelia babbled as she showered kisses on Zelan's face and hugged him to her chest from where she sat on his lap, crying happily as she rocked him. ~"I wanted so much to hold you! You've grown so big! You look just like your father! I love you! I'll never ever ever let you go!"~ In response to the overjoyed greeting from his mother, Zelan returned her hug, trying his hardest not to cry. It was his dream come true. His real parents were together and he was with them. He was oblivious to the stares of the king and his daughter, as well as Wryan and Katachi.  
  
"Grey," Wryan said softly, elbowing the Chimera copy in the side, "You sly dog, you! I never would have thought you'd actually screw someone, let alone have an affair with a princess!"  
  
"It was only fair, her husband was cheating on her," Grey stated firmly, though he was blushing and trying not to meet anyone's eyes. "And she didn't love him."  
  
Wryan sniggered to himself as Katachi exited the car, giving Grey a fish- eye, causing the Chimera to blush even deeper. Grey turned his back towards them, folding his arms on his chest and pretended no one was there. The Elite and scientist sniggered with each other at Gray.  
  
"However touching as this little reunion is, I have work I need to do," Katachi stated once the two Amelia's settled down and the original Amelia got off her son. Katachi gave a wave to her before turning and heading toward another car that wasn't owned by the palace and left.  
  
Amelia shrugged, holding her son's hand and then dragging him into the palace, calling over her shoulder, ~"Zelgadis!! Come on!"~ With a sigh, Grey turned and headed after her, Wryan moving behind to watch over the king and his daughter.  
  
**** 


	16. No Need for Kopii's

AN: If you hadn't guessed, any speech braced in ~ ~'s is in the 'old language'. ^_^ Sorry for the interruption. On with the story.  
  
Chapter 18?  
  
No Need for Kopii's.  
  
Katachi stood over the bed in which his latest project lay. It was a body, perfectly intact, clothes and all, which dated back to the time of before Philionel's reign and had somehow not decomposed. That was not saying that it was a fossil, but an actual flesh body that looked like it had only died two seconds ago.  
  
The body was a tall male with dark violet hair that had grown long, the only testament to it's long interment. The nails had grown long too, but they had broken off when they pulled the body from the pit in the center of the area called Dead City. Supposedly it had been one city once, that had been destroyed and rebuilt, also, the great tree Flagoon was supposed to have grown in the place where they'd started digging, by chance of a random comment by Grey about burying someone beneath it.  
  
The obvious cause of death was a stab wound through the chest. And that had been easy to fix. Katachi had to smile at that. Technology may not hold a candle to the miracles Magic could do, but it did have some specialties that no magic could ever hope to achieve. He nodded to Sylfia who turned on the machine that would restart the body's heart.  
  
A twitch, then a jerk of the body's chest occured before it's eyes flew open and it screamed, clutching the scar on its chest. Finally, he seemed to realize that things had changed and he wasn't dying, so he let his hands drop, staring around the room with mismatched eyes, one of blue-green, the other a shard of amber with a slit pupil like some cat's.  
  
"Hello," Katachi said slowly, they'd already imprinted the language into his mind, he simply had to access the information. Those strange eyes turned to stare at him, and they stared for a long time.  
  
"Hi," he said finally with just a hint of amusement, a smile twitching at his lips. "Who're you? What's this place? What's that?" And with his questions, he reached out and stuck his finger on one of the electromagnet plates. Of course it shocked him. Yelping, he pulled his finger back against his chest and stated, "That hurt," and promptly made a face at it. "You never answered my question, who're you?"  
  
Everyone in the lab was awe struck and Katachi was certainly among them. He watched as the violet haired creature wrapped the sheet around his waist and hopped off the bed to go inspect a mirror that was actually a window. First, he pulled his ragged and long bangs, then he pulled the extended mass of his hair over one shoulder. Finally, he grinned, "I don't look like him anymore!" he proclaimed and went off to inspect something else. "Eris isn't here, is she?" he asked out of the blue. "She'd be mad if I was running around not looking like him and stuff. Don't make me cut my hair please. I like it like this." He took a moment to stop talking and chewed on his fingernails. "I forgot, what was your name?" he asked Katachi once more, looking confused a moment until he remembered, "Oh, you never told it to me. How rude. But that's okay, cause I didn't tell you my name, but then I don't have one, so I can't really tell it to you. Well, I WAS called something before, but I hate that name I hate him. And if anyone calls me that I'll hurt them a lot."  
  
Katachi finally kicked his mind into gear, "Ah- I'm Dr. Katachi. It's alright if you don't have a name. Tell me, though, do you know of someone named Zelgadis Graywords?"  
  
The man nodded, "Yeah, he..." he turned pale and one hand went to his chest and his eyes went wide, "please don't tell him I'm alive again! He'll be upset and I don't want to die again!! It hurt!"  
  
Once more, Katachi was taken aback, "Ah, he's not alive anymore. It's been ten thousand years since his death."  
  
"Yippy!" the strange violet haired creature said and hopped once. "Um. Can I have some clothes now?"  
  
***  
  
Katachi sat across from his newest revival and stared with his mouth open somewhat, he hadn't known anyone could TALK so much, but this guy did it. "I don't know why I'm so hyper. I mean, it's not like I'm all that happy to be alive again, but when you think about it it's like I've got a whole new chance! I don't have to be what people tell me to be like because of what I am. They're all dead and stuff, so I'm happy about that- not that they're all dead, but that I can start over and just be what I want to be and I saw a girl once who was very happy and did things from her heart and I want to be like her, so I'm going to do what I think is right instead of killing people like I did last time just because Eris is messing with my head and making me go crazy. Hey Katachi, when's lunch?"  
  
Of course, Katachi didn't have the chance to answer. Instead the person, who was apparently a copy of someone that wasn't done right or something hated his original and was determined to not be like him. Which might mean that his original was more tolerable to be around... And the chatter continued as the day moved towards night and the scientist began to get sleepy. Finally, he DID pass out in his chair at his desk, softly snoring.  
  
Kopii had stopped talking when he heard the first snore, blinked at Katachi, then got to his feet and went out the door for a bit of exploring. Thankfully they'd given him clothes, but they were simply a white long sleeved shirt and a pair of white pants. The halls were dead white, quite a boring color, but it wasn't red, so Kopii was fine with it. Anything was better than red. He wandered down a few halls, following his nose along the halls, he paused at one cross section and sniffed, turning left and continuing on his journey.  
  
His nose led him to the right place, for he came upon a set of double doors that had a circular window in each about head height. Carefully, he peered through the hole and finally gave a closed eyed smile before entering.  
  
Inside was a medium sized room with rows of tables, each table had six chairs. At the other end of the room was a bar with a man standing behind it. He was obviously a cook of some sort, for he wore the funny hat. There were people in the room, plenty of people and they were talking softly with each other, though some of the talk died down when Kopii entered. He gave those looking a smile and wave and skipped toward the bar where the chief awaited with his arms crossed.  
  
"Who're you?" he asked in a sour guttural voice, but Kopii didn't flinch. "I don't recognize you. Get out of here!"  
  
Kopii widened his eyes and looked pitiful as he could, "but- I'm hungry and- "  
  
"Pay first!" he stated, slapping down his spatula with vengeance where Kopii had placed his hands on the counter.  
  
Snatching his hands back, he stared at the cook and protested, "but- I don't-"  
  
"Then get out!" the cook roared.  
  
Kopii narrowed his eyes. "I could fry you in an instant," he stated firmly, "So you'd better treat me better!"  
  
"Ah- that won't be necessary," a voice stated from behind Kopii, coming forward. "I'll pay. Just get him the special for the day."  
  
Kopii looked at the young man who had his arm draped around Kopii's shoulders as if he were a long time buddy, grinning a casual grin, his brown eyes glittering with humor, or perhaps ignorance of the bad things in life. He had brown hair that matched his eyes and his face was thin, he was tall as Kopii though, so that made it easier. The lunchroom Nazi snorted as the brown haired guy slid a credit chip across the counter at him then turned to load up a tray.  
  
Once everything had been taken care of, the brown haired man led Kopii back towards a table at the back of the room where they sat and the man grinned once more. It was an endearing smile that seemed familiar to Kopii somehow, so he asked, "What's your name?"  
  
"I'm Sean Gavrian, the janitor here," he replied easily. "What's yours?"  
  
"I don't have one, but you can call me whatever. I don't mind.. just not..." he shivered to even think of the name and therefor didn't say it out loud. Sean looked confused for a moment but shrugged and smiled. "Thank you for dinner, I haven't eaten all day! Katachi kept me in his office, but I talked him to sleep and snuck out."  
  
Sean gave a laugh at that. "Ah, so you're Katachi's new project? Where'd they find you?"  
  
"Um.. I dunno. Where I was?" Sean didn't seem that upset with the answer, in fact, he seemed to accept it for a very good answer. There really WAS no other place you could be rather then where you were.  
  
****  
  
Katachi slowly woke up to find himself alone in his office. He got to his feet and hurriedly ran his hands through his hair, turning to look at the clock on the wall. "Midnight?! Shit!" he turned back toward his desk and looked over the stuff there, unable to find the phone. Finally, he gave up and just jogged to the front desk to find that the staff were all gone. He looked up at the screen above the desk that showed various scenes through out the compound and his eyes widened in horror as the image flipped to the cafeteria.  
  
Turning, he ran flat out down the hall and burst through the doors to find Sean and the Kopii having a chugging contest. The Kopii won and raised his hands in trumph- lost his balance and fell off the table he was sitting on with the janitor. All around were ranged various scientists and doctors that worked there, even the Lunch Nazi was watching with amusement. Katachi shoved his way into the crowd ranged around the table to Kopii's side and grabbed his shoulder.  
  
"What in the WORLD are you doing?!"  
  
Kopii hiccuped, blowing beer breath in Katachi's face, "Yew fell 'sleep an wuz hungry... soz I came 'ere an met Shhhhawn. S'then wwee talked an stuph."  
  
Katachi turned his glare toward Sean then, frowning deeply. "And what the hell do you think YOU'RE doing getting him drunk? For all we know it might kill him!"  
  
"Aw, c'mon K'chi! Y' bein a spil sport! Haff a drink!" And the janitor shoved a beer into his hands clumsily. "E jus wants t' ave fun! S'all."  
  
The Kopii had managed to claw his way up by using Katachi's coat and he took the beer Sean was holding, lifting it high and proclaiming, "One more- and out I go!" He chugged it- then promptly passed out, falling backwards into the crowd. Thankfully they caught him before he hit the ground, but Katachi wasn't pleased. He'd have Gavrian's ears for this one, that was for sure.  
  
**** 


	17. Visiting Hours: 9 am - 5 pm

AN: yo! Iffn you readers wanna see hand drawn pics of the characters so far, hop on over to my mediaminer.org/fanfic/ account! The pictures are linked with the story.  
  
Sorry for not updating 4-30-02, I have 2 reports due on 5-6-02 and I'm going to Atlanta from May 2nd-3rd for a chorus competition. OHHH HO HO HO!!!  
  
Random thought: anyone know how to do/interested in making a Slayers Fanfic mailing list?? I think it'd be fun to bounce fanfic ideas off other Slayers writers/readers. ^_^ Email me if you're interested Katy521@bellsouth.net (please include a subject, something with 'slayers' in it? I get lots of junk mail, even on that addy.. v.v )  
  
Once again, sorry for the interruption!! I hope you like the chapter. ^_^  
  
Chapter 19  
  
Visiting Hours: 9 AM - 5 PM  
  
Amelia smiled slightly to herself as she rolled over in the bed, opening her eyes to find Gray sleeping peacefully beside her. Sure it was odd to sleep with a living rock, but after a while you got used to it, even if banging into him in the night left bruises. She always healed those before he got a chance to see them, though, so his delicate ego was never crushed. She slid down into the deep depression he caused in the bed, stretching her body against his, feeling comforted by simply being so near to him.  
  
Slowly, he opened his eyes and blinked at her before a smile came to his lips, his arm slid around her hips, hand sliding up her naked back. "Good morning," he murmured to her.  
  
"Morning," she replied, tipping her head back to look at him from beneath her lashes. Grey found that irresistible and moved closer to place a kiss upon her lips, a kiss that she gladly returned.  
  
There was a loud knock on the door that was almost a frantic banging, then it flew open to admit Amelia XXXIX, who glowered at the two bodies tangled among the bed sheets. "Grey Wyrs," she said scornfully, "We have graciously provided you a room of your own, it would be polite if you USED it!" Grey exchanged a look with his lover then sat up, stretching and showing off his gloriously muscled chest and rock studded skin, she clutched the flat sheet to her naked breasts and smiled at the sight she got from behind him, causing the younger princess standing at the door to fume silently.  
  
"Guess I should go get dressed then," Grey mumbled, running his hands through his rumpled wire hair and straightening them out carefully with his fingers.  
  
"Maybe," Amelia Wil Tessa De Seyruun replied, though she didn't seem to agree with the notion. Amelia XXXIX finally gave a growl, turned, and slammed the door shut as she left. "Maybe not... not until you show me how much you love me again."  
  
Grey gave his lover a grin after glancing at the door, "I like that idea a whole lot more then getting dressed," he replied and turned to pin her to the bed.  
  
****  
  
Amelia XXXIX stood outside the door she'd just slammed, glaring heatedly at the wall opposite her. She wanted to hit something, someone, especially Amelia, her predecessor. It just wasn't fair! "I'm the princess now! I should get what I want!" she pouted, "I want Grey!" her eyes watered as she heard a soft moan, then a gasping cry of pleasure from obvious female origin. Amelia XXXIX blushed deeply, but it was when her ancestor screamed 'Zelgadis' gleefully that she ran from the area, tears streaming down her pretty cheeks and mussing her eye makeup.  
  
Somehow, she ended up in the gardens, moving hurriedly among the roses that had yet to bloom, wiping at her eyes with the bell sleeves of her white dress top and upon reaching a pool among the paths that crisscrossed though the gardens, did she throw her self down upon a stone bench. "It's just not fair!" she muttered darkly to herself.  
  
"What's not fair?" asked a voice that was so reminiscent of Grey's that Amelia XXXIX started and turned around quickly, only to look upon Zelan. He was wearing an Elite Guard uniform, the cast symbol containing four stars when the highest one could get in the Guard was three, one star in each diamond, yet the forth was put below the gold circle. Smiling slightly, Zelan took a careful seat on the other side of the bench from the princess.  
  
"Grey's with that WOMAN!" she stated firmly, turning her face away from Zelan, pouting her lips out and sniffling. She looked terrible with her eye makeup all smeared under her eyes like bags and her face slightly red from crying.  
  
"My mother, you mean," Zelan stated, watching her carefully. "Look, my dad isn't likely to just forget about her now that he has her-"  
  
"I KNOW!" Amelia XXXIX scowled at him. "You didn't think I knew that?! Why'd he have to go and do that?!" She stood, taking a few steps toward the pool, her arms crossing under her full breasts and she stared out across the water that reflected the early morning sunlight and though the sky was clear, it still had a gray cast to it.  
  
"Because he loves her," Zelan stated and stood, coming to stand beside Amelia XXXIX, "Please don't try to break them up. They've had enough problems and- and I want them to be together! I want to have parents who're married to each other and in love with each other and who will take care of me." Zelan clenched his fists, watching the princess's profiled face. Once more, she'd pouted out her lower lip.  
  
Finally, she turned toward Zelan with a haughty expression. "I don't care what you want. It's what _I_ want that matters! Everyone's supposed to make sure that _I'm_ happy! Not the other way around. Besides, by that uniform, that means you have to take my orders. I want you to stay out of it. I'll do what I want, and if I want Grey, I'll get him."  
  
Zelan forced his expression to remain blank as he stared at her, watching as she turned and set off, stomping down one of the paths, headed back toward the palace. ~"Like hell I'll stay out of it,"~ Zelan finally stated when she was out of hearing range.  
  
****  
  
Grey eyed the symbol on his shirt in the mirror once more before turning and heading out toward the dining room where breakfast would soon be served. He'd been told by Katachi that he'd been promoted to the leader of the new magic sect in the Elite Guard, Zelan and Amelia were also members of this guard and whoever they decided to teach magic to in the Elite would also be switched to his sect.  
  
Wryan showed up almost as soon as he stepped out of his room. "Heyya," he said slyly. "Heard you got caught in her room this morning..."  
  
"Yeah? So?" Grey replied with, giving the shorter redhead a look from the corner of his eye. "I'm not allowed to sleep with my own fiancee?"  
  
Softly, Wryan laughed, "That's not ALL you did with her, I'm sure." His comment was rewarded with a blush but Grey's lips remained firm as they moved along the ornate hall. "I'm convinced," Wryan said out of the blue as he walked beside Grey, "You're not an AI." Grey gave a sigh. "You're a sex 'droid!" Grey stumbled forward and came to a stop.  
  
Grey swirled to face Wryan, grabbing the front of the shorter man's uniform and shaking him violently, "Damn it! I can't believe you! Why can't you get it through your frickin skull that I'm not some sort of machine?! I'm a HUMAN!"  
  
The sound of applause broke into his anger and he looked over his shoulder to find his beloved clapping with a beautiful smile upon her face. On her body, she wore the Elite uniform. "I'm so happy I happened to be around to hear you say that, Zel!" she said brightly, "I'll have to mark the calendar and declare a national holiday. You actually called yourself human!" To soothe his battered ego, she came forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek once he'd let go of Wryan.  
  
Grey wasn't going to submit to such treatment though, and once he'd collected the kiss, he turned and headed down the hall once more, fists clenched at his sides. Amelia laughed once more and smiled after him before turning towards Wryan. "Did he hurt you? He tends to forget his strength sometimes," she said and reached out to pull Wryan's shirt straight and brush out the wrinkles with her hands. "I didn't get to meet you properly yesterday, I was just so happy to be alive again that I just forgot things." She gave a dazzling smile and Wryan was forced to collect his wits, tear his gaze from her tightly suited body, and reply.  
  
"Ah- no. I'm alright. I've had him do worse to me then that," he laughed and rubbed the back of his head before offering out his hand, "I'm Wryan Inverse. I was the ranking officer on this mission, but.. I guess he is now."  
  
Amelia took his hand and shook it in a firm grip that startled him, "Amelia Graywords," she introduced herself. "It's nice to meet you. You're obviously related to Lina, you've got her looks." There seemed to be some sort of hidden joke there that Wryan missed, so he let it be until he could find out WHAT was so funny about the comment.  
  
Instead, Wryan decided to change the subject, "Yeah, so how do you like things now?" he asked, moving forward in the direction Grey had taken.  
  
She tipped her head to the side and turned to walk with him. "It's interesting. A lot of things have changed, I have to say that the air was much clearer back then. There certainly weren't so many people. But I like it, if only because I can finally be with Zelgadis."  
  
"Has he changed from when you knew him?" Wryan asked, unaware of the soft footfalls behind him.  
  
Amelia nodded, "In some ways, certainly for the better, I think. He's not so hung up over his being a Chimera as he was. Maybe he's forgiven himself for his negative points and decided to just live with it." She smiled to herself, "I certainly hope so."  
  
By that time, they'd entered the breakfast hall and Wryan pulled out a chair for her- right beside Grey, who was already seated at the table and sipping his coffee. The Chimera gave the redhead a look before going on with buttering his toast and ignoring the world for a bit. Zelan sat across the table from his father pouring milk into his own cup of coffee and idly stirring it with a spoon.  
  
The king entered soon after and took a seat as Wryan was the only one to stand up in respect at his entrance, his daughter wasn't that far behind and sat at his right hand with Grey seated on her right. This didn't bother the king, though, he simply sat and gave a gesture toward the redhead that he should sit before turning his attention to his ancestor. "Are you enjoying yourself, Lady Amelia?"  
  
Amelia XXXIX scowled from where she sat and her predecessor answered the question, "Yes," she replied with a bright smile, "It's very interesting. Everything's so different, but I'm sure I can get used to it."  
  
Returning the smile, the king sipped his glass of orange juice before speaking again, "Ah... I have a slight, possibly delicate, question for you. Are you..."  
  
"In the line for ascension?" the olden day's princess broke in with when the king faltered, "No. I don't wish to be. My time has passed. I'd prefer to simply change my name to Amelia Tessa Graywords, if that's alright with you? It wouldn't raise any strange questions in the public and cause confusion if I were just to become another Elite." Her lips pursed slightly and her eyes danced with amusement. "It'll just be our little secret." Grey twitched slightly at that word as if it had bad connotations for him. She patted his arm gently in response.  
  
~"Why'd you have to go and say that word? You know I hate that word..."~ Grey hissed at her and she simply gave a shrug and smile, closing her eyes. This smile also made him twitch and slop some coffee on his hand- which he didn't feel the burn of.  
  
The king broke into the exchange with a clearing of his throat. "If that is what you wish... Ms. Amelia."  
  
"Mrs. Amelia," she corrected and looped her arm with Grey's. "Or it will be as soon as he gets around to marrying me." Grey scowled at the table as Amelia jarred his hand and made him spill some more coffee. Zelan looked slightly amused at the conversation and nibbled his eggs, eyes flicking towards Amelia XXXIX on occasion. The princess scowled right back at him.  
  
****  
  
Grey, Amelia, and Zelan stood not all that far away from Amelia XXXIX and her father. ~"Mazoku,"~ Grey repeated to Zelan after his son had asked for clarification of what he'd heard. ~"In specific, Xelloss. Or I suspect it's Xelloss, but how many smiling purple-haired humanoid Mazoku ARE there?"~  
  
~"Maybe it's just one imitating Xelloss?"~ Amelia suggested nervously, though she didn't quite seem that convinced of it either.  
  
Grey shook his head. ~"No one could kill Xelloss that easily, besides, why would a Mazoku want to ride on the coat tails of Xelloss's fame as the Trickster Priest?"~  
  
~"Only way we'll ever know for sure is if he shows up himself,"~ Zelan concluded, folding his arms on his chest and frowning. He had a bone to pick with Xelloss as well, specifically, for murdering his father, and himself.  
  
Amelia looked down at the ground, clasping her hands together. ~"He...did me a favor though..."~ she said softly, gaining the attention of the two males in her company. Lifting her head, she looked at Grey with watery eyes. ~"He killed me so I could be with you. He promised that I would be with you before I knew it.. and he was right. I'm with you now."~  
  
Grey stared at her for a long moment before he lifted a hand and gently brushed her tears away, giving a tender smile to her. ~"It's alright,"~ he told her softly. ~"We'll find a way to get out of having you return a favor to him, if it is him at all."~ She moved into his arms and put her face against his chest, feeling his warmth wrap around her, she could smell his earthy scent and felt comforted. Zelan smiled to himself, happy to not be included in the cuddling he simply knew that his mother's love extended to him as well, and though his father couldn't quite express it, he knew the older man loved him as well. He turned his gaze to where the king sat with his daughter and a few noblemen at a table on the patio in the garden not all that far away. On occasion, they glanced up at the guards, curious as to the meaning of the four stars.  
  
Zelan's eyes narrowed, the hair on the back of his neck prickled, and he suddenly threw his hands forward, casting a barrier over the group of nobles just as a spray of lazer shots burst forth from the bushes. They bounced harmlessly off the shield. The bushes rustled and Grey darted out toward the noise, Amelia stood behind her son, helping hold the shield.  
  
Within a few moments, Grey returned, empty handed. His expression was grim though, his body tense. ~"Stay on guard,"~ he warned softly.  
  
Shakily, the king got to his feet, watching as the barrier was lowered. "What happened?" he asked Grey.  
  
The Chimera turned to face him, pondering, then finally stating, "Mazoku, with lazer weapons. Though why they're bothering to use such things, I don't know. You're perfectly safe right now, so relax and enjoy the afternoon."  
  
The king stared at Grey for a long moment, as if to argue that Mazoku were simply myths. Instead, he took his seat and gave a weak smile. Grey was the expert in that sort of thing, so he let it be. Grey turned back toward his family, his dark look returning in full force. ~"Disappeared right as I got to the bushes,"~ he stated in a growl.  
  
****  
  
"Another fantastic discovery?" The king repeated, leaning forward slightly in his comfy arm-chair. The morning had turned into afternoon, and Katachi had returned to the palace for lunch, then he and the king- as well as the king's bodyguard, who happened to be Amelia at this time- retired to his majesty's study. Amelia fondly remembered the room from when her father used it, but she tried not to let her nostalgia show, for even the furnishings were much the same as they had been when she remembered it.  
  
Katachi nodded, "In one of Grey's stories, he stated that they buried someone beneath Flagoon- which was the holy tree-"  
  
"Yes, I remember," the king stated, waving a hand, "What about it?"  
  
"Well, we found something."  
  
The king looked slightly annoyed, "What did you find?"  
  
"The body. Fully intact, except for where it had been stabbed." Katachi looked superior.  
  
His majesty didn't look all that pleased. "So you copied it?"  
  
Katachi quickly placed his drink on the table beside his chair, "Oh, heavens no. There was no need for all that. We simply repaired the hole and restarted the heart! He's ancient, Your Highness. He's from Zelgadis's time! He's not quite what I expected, but he's certainly interesting."  
  
Amelia blinked, realizing that she had blanked out for a moment and missed that entire bit of the conversation, Zel wouldn't be happy if he found out she'd missed something important. Sadly, the meeting seemed to be over, for the king stood, "I suppose I should see him then?"  
  
Katachi nodded, "If you wish to, Your Majesty," he said and quickly stood as well. "If not, then Grey should at least talk to him."  
  
The king returned the nod, "Yes, that would probably be best. Let's go then." He turned towards his guard, "Contact Grey," he said, "We'll be going to the Dead City lab site." She nodded curtly and followed after the king as he left the study, her finger quickly pressed the button on her wrist comm. ~"Zel, we're going somewhere, the king wants you to come, meet us at the front doors?"~  
  
"Hai," Grey's voice returned in her earplug and she let go of the button to concentrate on the current situation. She passed Zelan in an intersection of hallways on the way. He was carefully following the princess with Wryan's help, she blew a kiss to him and he smiled at her in return, giving a slight wave. She hurriedly caught up with the king and Katachi, smiling to herself as she felt the warm throb of love in her breast at the thought of her son.  
  
True to his word, Grey was waiting at the front doors of the palace, silent as a statue, his hands linked behind his back and feet braced shoulder width apart. As the king exited the palace, his two guards moved to brace him, walking with him to the car that awaited, having been brought out by word from a servant sent on ahead of his king. They entered, Amelia and Grey sitting on one side of the car, near the door, while the king sat on the other side, though not in direct line with it so that anyone standing outside could simply shoot in.  
  
Katachi leaned close to the king and mumbled softly, "Amazing, aren't they? So perfect.. as if they really ARE the real thing." The king gave a grin, nodding his agreement. Grey scowled, having heard the comment but didn't seem to take any notice of it otherwise.  
  
****  
  
The Kopii sat upon his bed thinking about random things, his mind mostly skipping from one subject to another and ignoring the world for all that was worth. The door was locked, he'd tried to open it, but there wasn't a way to from his side. That ticked him off, but he knew that if he really wanted to, he could get out, but that would probably cause them to install blast proof doors.  
  
This time.. it was an amazing thing. Everything was so civilized! Technology was advanced far beyond anything he had ever thought possible. Of course, he hadn't had much time to think about the future when he was last alive. Eris hadn't given him time to. Instead, she forced him to do her will, despite what he knew was wrong- by way of the faint and dusty memories his head contained that were once Rezo's.  
  
He'd dreamed last night, he recalled. Dreamed that a tree was talking to him about stuff. He was standing beneath it, staring up at the branches, watching the sun get caught among the leaves, as if those branches were holding up the sky itself. The image stuck in his mind firmly, a tree with the sun caught in the leaves. Somehow, he knew that would be important.. somehow.  
  
The tree had spoken to him, but it was only in pictures. The sky turning grey from smoke and on the horizon dark clouds rolling in filled with horrid faces. A priest, dressed in black, his eyes shadowed like midnight stood before three bodies that were stretched out on the ground, beyond him was a blackened and burnt city, a crater in its center. A woman came, long flowing hair and sparking eyes floated above the ground, waved her mace as she cast a spell over the dead city. Buildings and people sprung up where the sparks of her magic landed and from the crater a tree unfolded its leaves. The tree that held up the sky.  
  
The door opened- startling Kopii, and he looked over to find one of the scientists who were under Katachi's orders. This man had black hair and a thin mustache, dull eyes, pale face, and a seeming disinterest in speaking. Kopii had given up talking to him because he didn't even bother responding when he decided to give the guy a chance to. Kopii hadn't even gotten the guy's name.  
  
"Lunch time," the man said. Kopii sighed, pulling his knees closer to his chest and putting his face on them.  
  
"I'm not hungry right now." After the first few days, Kopii had realized that Sean only came at night, so he wouldn't see him at lunch- which was the only meal he was allowed out of his room for. Still he had nothing but white clothes to wear, and they had given him shoes, but there was no reason to wear them when he wasn't allowed outside.  
  
The scientist took out a notepad and scribbled down some notes as he stood in the door, watching Kopii. Finally, he got annoyed and lifted his face from his knees. "Would you mind going away now? I told you I'm not hungry." Still the scientist didn't move. In frustration, Kopii got up and moved toward the door. The scientist moved then, turning around to lead him to the cafeteria- just like he did every day. Kopii narrowed his eyes and made a run for it, feeling like he really needed some exercise other than getting on those silly machines that didn't let you go anywhere.  
  
A hand snapped out as he passed the scientist and grabbed his arm in a hard and unyielding grip. Startled, Kopii snapped around, grabbing the man's wrist, ~"Monovolt!"~ he cast. The reaction wasn't what he'd expected. Instead of screaming, the scientist's head started smoking and suddenly blew up. The hand didn't relax as crackling electricity and smoke boiled up from the exposed wire and metal. Kopii yanked his arm free and backed against the wall, clutching his arm, he'd lost some skin to the creature and he quickly healed it, but the shock remained.  
  
~"oh.. Cephied!!"~ he breathed, staring at the still standing corpse. It wasn't long before people showed up and took fire extinguishers to the smoldering body. One reached out for him but he shied away in terror, dashing back into his room and shoving himself into a corner. ~"They- they're not alive! They're not alive!"~ he wept, trembling and once more they tried to come near him with their electronic things and he threw a flare Carrot at them to make them back off. They seemed to get the idea and finally left the room, locking the door behind them. Slowly, Kopii sank down in his corner, clutching his knees against his chest and watching the door fearfully.  
  
*****  
  
Katachi and the king stood at a monitor in the main room of the lab. "So he hasn't moved since noon?" the scientist asked Sylfia.  
  
She nodded. "He blew up C343 too."  
  
"Damn," Katachi muttered, pondering what to do. He could understand why the guy would be so terrified after such an experience, but what to do about it. Finally, he turned toward Grey, looking at him and Amelia. "Maybe.." he mumbled to himself and the king blinked.  
  
"What?"  
  
Katachi blushed faintly, shoving a hand through his hair and giving a nervous smile, "I think maybe he needs someone familiar to calm him. Grey, come here a moment?"  
  
The Chimera came forward, looking carefully at the screen as Katachi spoke, "We found another body in the center of the Dead City, he was perfectly preserved except for the stab wound in his chest. We fixed that and restarted his heart. He seemed to be perfectly fine, but today he ended up attacking one of the droids- probably out of self defense.... That happened around noon and he hasn't moved since."  
  
"Ask Amelia," Grey stated and moved away. Thankfully, Amelia had overheard and it didn't have to be explained once more. With a slight smile, she nodded and Katachi led them down to Kopii's room, unlocking the door with a scan of his hand and waited as Amelia stepped in.  
  
***  
  
The door had opened for the first time in three hours, longer than they'd ever left him alone before, his eyes widened when he saw who stepped in. Amelia- wearing a black body suit exactly like that which all the other supposed people wore- except she had four red stars on her symbol. He didn't think much of it but he was highly nervous that they would send in someone who looked like someone he remembered fighting.  
  
She smiled a calm smile, unlike that hyperactive smile she had when he fought her, as if she'd gotten older. In fact, she did look older. An older version. He lifted his hands with a spell ready to ward her off but she stopped.  
  
~"Remember that time under Flagoon,"~ she said softly, ~"I don't want to fight you again. There's no reason for it."~  
  
~"You're not real,"~ Kopii stated firmly, staring at her. ~"You're just metal and wire and no one's real here!"~  
  
Amelia reached into her pocket, pulling out a sheathed dagger, ~"Here, I'll prove to you I'm real."~ She pulled the knife out pricked her finger with the blade, blood dripped to the floor and she sheathed the blade once more. ~"Blood. Robots don't bleed."~  
  
  
  
Tears came to his eyes as he stared at the blood on the floor. ~"What's going on?!"~ he almost wailed, hugging his knees against his chest. ~"At first I was happy to be alive but they won't let me go anywhere!"~ After a quick healing spell, Amelia came forward slowly, crouching beside Kopii, reaching out to touch his face with her fingers. He watched her but made no move to push her away, so she came closer and put her arms around him. At first, he stiffened, as if expecting her to do something to him but when she only pulled his head against her shoulder and smoothed his hair with one hand he relaxed. ~"How...are you here? They told me this was the future... did they lie?"~  
  
Amelia shook her head slightly, ~"No, they didn't lie to you. I'm a copy, but it doesn't matter if I consider myself the original or not because there's no one who really cares if I do. Zelgadis is here too but he's being called Grey now. You can be whatever you want to be. If you want to be Rezo or not, no one minds, they can't tell you 'no'."~  
  
Kopii lifted his head, looking at her with eyes slightly puffy from his terrified tears. ~"You're a copy?"~ he asked hopefully. She nodded, her fingers carefully wiping his face clean. ~"I don't want to be Rezo. I want a name of my own... Please name me?"~  
  
Once more, she smiled kindly, like the mother he never had, ~"Sure I will,"~ she replied and tucked some of his unruly hair behind his ear. The confused copy closed his eyes, turning his face into her hand and felt very comforted by her ministrations. ~"Lee,"~ she said softly, ~"Riven Lee. Do you like that?"~ He nodded slightly and put his face on her shoulder once more.  
  
The scraping of a boot against the floor cause Amelia to look over her shoulder, finding Grey standing in the door, Katachi nervously watching. Kopii lifted his head and stared at Grey for a moment before the Chimera spoke, ~"I don't blame you for what you did in the past. It doesn't matter what happened before."~ Kopii smiled at those words, standing as Amelia moved away a bit and stood. ~"What matters is that there are Mazoku causing havoc and we- Amelia and I, were charged with the duty of stopping them."~  
  
Grey seemed to have a point, but he didn't want to say it, Amelia spoke up for him, ~"Would you like to help us? We would really appreciate it if you did. Having someone else who knows magic could turn the odds in our favor."~  
  
Eagerly, Kopii nodded, clasping his hands together in his excitement. Amelia smiled up at him. "Thank you," she said in the current language and touched his arm gently, looking at the blood stained sleeve, she carefully checked the already completely healed wound and nodded slightly, "You're alright now?"  
  
"Yeah..." he said softly. "I...just didn't expect his head to blow up like that!" Amelia pressed her hands over her mouth and her eyes danced with laughter.  
  
Grey frowned slightly, "...." he just closed his mouth and stepped back out of the room. "He's under my command now," he told Katachi with a slight glare directed at him. "And the least you could have done was warned him about droids.. Baka."  
  
**** 


	18. A post before I go for the weekend.

AN: Gads... I've got some evil ideas for this story.. and I should be working on my second report or the poster of my first report, v.v I don't want to though!!!! ;.;  
  
sheez. On my document, this story is 63 pages long, not including the plot ideas page ~_^, no, I'm not going to mess up and post THAT anytime soon. Heehehe! Anyway, I fixed the length by taking out the spaces between the paragraphs, that brought it down from 70 to 58 pages, including plot-ideas page.  
  
Someone asked about how the affair started, well, I'm proud to tell you that I've already started working on the companion story to this one, and you don't have to read it. And even if you read that story it'll seem like a stand alone, they're two separate stories but they're kinda linked.. ^_^  
  
Chapter 20  
  
more plotly type things happening, no real name for this chapter as of yet...  
  
Riven was happy. He'd gotten a name, he'd gotten to go outside, and he was welcome somewhere for the first time ever. He had a purpose now- protect the king at all costs! Of course, going outside had been somewhat depressing when he saw the sky and looked north toward where Siraag had once been. The entire area was a blackened and open sore, a crater in the center- as well as another two that he'd created himself. He felt bad about that.  
  
His looking at the sky revived his memory of that odd dream- the sky all smoky over a dead city, the black priest standing over three bodies shrouded in white like heroes passed away. He almost expected to see the roiling cloud of black demons boiling on the horizon, engulfing the world. Shivering, he turned and hurried to get into the car that supposedly flew- though right now it was just a circular looking object made of metal resting on the ground with one piece of the metal peeled back to show a darkened interior. There appeared to be no windows in the thing either, just seats all the way around.  
  
Stepping into the car, he flopped into a seat on one side of the door. He felt out of place in all white. As if he were a newborn, free of sin and guilt. Grey and Amelia sat on the other side of the door, Katachi and the blonde king on the far side, though they weren't near Riven, as if afraid to get near his purity. Riven pulled his feet into the seat with him, wrapping his arms around his knees and resting his chin.  
  
Somehow, the car knew that all its passengers were in and seated, the door closed with a faint hiss as light shined down from the ceiling. An image of a chibi green haired girl wearing a short flared red skirt with high socks and cute shoes, a short jacket that matched her skirt and underneath a white pleated shirt and a red hat on her head appeared, smiling brightly. "Destination?" she asked in a matching voice, her blue eyes focusing on the king.  
  
"The palace," the king ordered and sat back in his seat as the car hummed into life and lifted off the ground. Slowly, the horizontal midsection of the car began to spin, the motion causing it's passengers to be pushed back into their seats securely though without restricting movement, like a gravitational seat belt, next it lifted higher and shot through the air, heading in a generally south western direction.  
  
Riven pondered over the dead city once more, feeling the slight tug in his heart back toward it, as if he had some sort of string connecting him to something there. For a brief second, he thought it was nostalgia, but he brushed that away. He had no reason to love that land. After all, the people who had called him Rezo had once lived there. He'd taken his revenge on them, so there was no reason. Yet the feeling wouldn't be so easily forgotten. He felt as if he'd watched that land grow and prosper under his stoic eyes. It was strange, as if he had three sets of memories in his head, two of which weren't at his direct command, only his own could he actually control what he decided to think about or remember.  
  
Sometime during the flight, he fell asleep and was unaware of when Amelia shifted from her seat beside Grey to Riven's side, prodding him into a prone position and pulling his head into her lap, gently caressing his long violet hair like any mother would do their child. Katachi glanced at Grey to find that the Chimera was his typical non-responsive self and had both his arms and legs crossed in a nonchalant fashion. So individual, Katachi wondered once more if perhaps he had somehow brought the originals back to life, just as he'd done to Riven.  
  
Upon their arrival and landing at the palace, the green haired girl appeared once more, smiling brightly, "Have a good day!" she said and disappeared. The door opened and the lights turned off.  
  
Amelia shook Riven's shoulder slightly, "Hey," she said softly, "Wake up, we're here."  
  
The Kopii gave a wide yawn, blinking his eyes open and sitting up, staring at Amelia. He was about to ask when she smiled at him, stood, and stepped out of the car, the king and Katachi following, Grey went after the scientist. Riven slid his feet to the floor and got up, hurriedly stepping out of the car before the door could close on him and followed the rest of the group across the courtyard and to the front door.  
  
He tried his hardest not to gape, but his eyes ended up being wide in wonder at the ornate decorations of the front hall. The king seemed annoyed for some reason, as if his time had been wasted by that trip and he moved down the hall at a fast clip.  
  
Grey pressed a button on his wrist unit, ~"Zelan, we're back. Any problems?"~ he said softly, he seemed to hear a response of some sort and nodded slightly to himself. Apparently nothing had happened worth noting.  
  
****  
  
Amelia XXXIX sat in her music lessons with Jiras, being bored to tears about theory when she saw Zelan press a button on his wrist unit and mumble something. She leapt from her seat, exclaiming, "Daddy's home!" then ran down the hall, headed for the front hall.  
  
Muttering to himself, Zelan quickly followed, though he did cast an apologetic look to Jiras. He'd come to respect the guy for all his patience when concerning the princess. He'd also come to like the guy for his vast amounts of knowledge and his insistence that he knew very little in the grand scheme of things. Zelan was giving him lessons on the 'Old Language' and in return, Jiras taught him some random stuff that his schooling with Lina had missed or just things that Lina would never have known in her lifetime.  
  
Amelia XXXIX sped down the hall, though she came to a skidding halt when she found the room empty except for a man wearing white pants, white long sleeved shirt, and white shoes. He stood with his back towards her, gawking at a painting of some random royalty. Zelan came in behind her and stopped.  
  
~"Hey dad, who's this yokle?"~ Zelan asked into his wrist unit but before he could be answered the long violet haired head turned and scowled over his shoulder.  
  
~"I'm no yokle!"~ Riven stated firmly, ~"I may not know anything but I'm not THAT dumb!"~ Zelan about gaped as the man turned around, planted his feet firmly on the floor and fists on his hips. "And my name is Riven Lee!" he stated proudly, switching to the current language.  
  
"Well whoever you are, you need a haircut," Amelia XXXIX stated sourly.  
  
Riven's left brow twitched slightly, "No. I like it long. And if you make me get my hair cut, I'll shave you bald! Including eyebrows," he stated firmly.  
  
Faintly, Zelan heard his mother's voice, ~"That's Riven, be nice to him, he hasn't been around for very long."~ The young chimera made his affirmative reply as Amelia XXXIX scowled at the Kopii, taking a deep breath to start up a rant about how people should respect her.  
  
"I'm the Princess and YOU're supposed to -" she didn't get to finish, though, for she suddenly found herself thrown to the floor by Zelan's heavy and very hard body. Meanwhile, Riven stood above them, his hands glowing with his readied spell. The shot that had been fired at the princess had gone over her to slam into a mirror that had been behind her. The attacker was nowhere to be found.  
  
"Anou, what was that?" Riven asked.  
  
"Mazoku," Zelan replied, getting off his charge and picking her up off the floor easily.  
  
The princess wasn't happy at this treatment, however, "How DARE you touch me like that!" she ranted.  
  
Riven turned toward her, slapping a hand over her mouth, "Oh hush, you spoiled brat. You should think about other people than yourself or someone's going to REALLY get ticked off at you and try to kill you. Or maybe you've already ticked someone off enough." Anger smoldered in her eyes and she viscously took a bite out of Kopii's palm. Yelping, he withdrew his hand and pouted at her, "And I'm supposed to protect this brat?" he asked Zelan who nodded regretfully.  
  
Amelia XXXIX fumed and swirled around, stomping off down the hall and back to the music room where she slammed the door shut. "Wryan, take over watching the princess, Zelan, bring Riven to my room," came Grey's voice over the earplug.  
  
"Anyway, dad wants to talk to you or something, so come on," Zelan stated aloud, turning and heading down another hall as Wryan managed to get into the music room with Jiras's help.  
  
Gaping once more, Riven obediently followed Zelan along the hall, up some stairs and finally into a set of private rooms in which Grey awaited, standing with his arms crossed and a blank look on his face. The sitting room of his apartment was lush and neuter in decoration, neither feminine nor masculine and tasteful, if you liked lots of furniture cluttering the walking space. It was obvious that Grey did not. On one couch was a pile of folded black material.  
  
"You can go, Zelan," Grey stated and the boy gave a slightly pouty look to his father before turning and leaving, closing the door softly behind him. "Riven," Grey stated, unfolding one arm to gesture at the couch and black clothes, "That's your new uniform, you take my orders now. The situation is that there are Mazoku causing havoc everywhere. Our job is to protect the king and crown princess. If either of them die plenty of chaos and confusion would be created." He paused, as if he was listening to something- that being the plug in his left ear. Brushing the comment he heard aside, he continued, "Have you heard of the 'Trickster Priest'?" at Riven's head shake Grey gave a slight sigh, "He's very powerful. He's both the priest and general of the Greater Beastmaster. His name is Xelloss-"  
  
"Talking about me behind my back, Zelgadis? Don't you know better?" a voice broke in and Grey swiftly turned around, his hands clenched as he stared at the purled haired Mazoku who sat floating in the air near the fireplace.  
  
"What're you up to?" Grey asked, forcing himself to remain calm as Riven simply stood there behind him.  
  
Xelloss gave a slight chuckle, opening his eyes and looking at the two with his disturbing amethyst shards, "Why do you bother even asking that? You know the answer is a secret."  
  
Taking a breath, Grey relaxed his hands though he was still ready to cast a spell should it be needed. "Just on the off chance that you would actually answer.... Why did you kill me? Why did you kill my son and Amelia?"  
  
The eyes closed and Xelloss gave a grin, "Because-" he paused, taking a breath, lifting one hand, "I needed you here," he said and disappeared, leaving Grey shocked.  
  
"He...answered..."  
  
****  
  
Riven adjusted the earplug once more, feeling odd with it in one ear and nothing in the other, Grey gave him a look, as if to say 'quit messing with it' as they stood near the king. It was evening and a large party was just getting underway. This particular party was celebrating Amelia XXXIX's eighteenth birthday, so there were a lot of nobles and just all around rich people hanging around, talking, eating, dancing, and just being loud in general. The music was terrible stuff, consisting of odd blips and blats on some strange instrument and the endless thumpa-thumpa-thumpa of the rhythm though it didn't seem like a very imaginative beat. Grey was considering grabbing the guitar from the lead player of the band arranged at one side of the room and giving the guests some REAL music to dance to.  
  
He squished his urge though and watched the mixed alien and human guests milling around on the main floor like stirred ants. Amelia and Wryan were dressed up and hidden among the crowd as guests while Grey, Zelan, and Riven were in uniform. The redhead had thankfully agreed with the tactic of hiding some operatives among the guests to hear any plots by the actual real people against the king while the three apparent guards distracted them and deterred ideas of taking aim at someone.  
  
Once more, Grey spotted Kopii messing with the earplug and scowled deeply at him. Riven pouted faintly and dropped his hand after running his hand through his hair, pushing it back from his face. In the crowd the ex- princess was dressed in pearl pink, a somewhat older styled dress, but it was still elegant, slim lined with a low neckline. Her hair was pulled into a bun on her head with diamonds draped down it. More diamonds dangled from her ears and the earplug remained hidden in her ear, her wrist unit was disguised as a bracelet- a little invention Grey had come up with.  
  
Amelia stood among the throng, though within sight of the princess, always managing to end up near her namesake and in a perfect place to watch everything going on around her. Currently, she was being talked at by another noble who was apparently impressed by her court manner. Apparently the trick of saying nothing at all in a conversation hadn't really been improved on since her days in court and she floated among the people, gathering random comments. Mostly the people were happy with their king, though he wasn't the one who actually ruled them. He was just a figurehead who they loved for his seeming heroic qualities.  
  
She also heard that the girls thought the three Elite's were handsome, though probably unnecessary, even at something like this. Amelia simply smiled and kept the truth to herself. A somewhat short woman with large gaudy jewelry approached Amelia, "Hello," she said, "I saw you standing all by yourself over here. I don't recognize you, new money?"  
  
Amelia smiled her court smile, "A friend," she replied, gesturing toward the princess with one gloved hand.  
  
"I'm Duchess Amonya," the elderly pudgy lady introduced herself, offering a hand. Almost automatically, Amelia took the woman's hand and curtsied over it. This impressed the old woman.  
  
"Amelia Graywords," she introduced herself in fashion.  
  
The duchess beamed proudly, "A pleasure, my dear!" she replied and small talk ensued, the duchess getting what she thought were a few facts out of Amelia before spying someone else and moving off to spread news of the princess's wonderfully mannered friend who happened to have the same name. The last name went over her head completely.  
  
Another, much younger woman approached Amelia not long after the duchess left. "Wow! Someone around my age!" she said, obviously new money and Amelia smiled. "I'm Niana Phalson," she introduced herself, offering her hand for a shake and got a polite clasp and curtsy instead. "I don't know why I come to things like this anymore, all the really hot guys are taken!" she said after Amelia introduced herself. "Or they're aliens," she pouted, gesturing at Grey, "Geez! He's gotta be from some other side of the universe! I wish he was human though. He's such a cutie! If only I could see him smile..."  
  
Amelia gave a soft laugh, "I'm afraid he's already taken anyway," she said, "by me..."  
  
Niana gaped but congratulated Amelia on her fine catch. "Who's his friend over there?" she pointed carefully at Zelan who stood stiffly off to one slightly shadowed side, looking fine in his uniform.  
  
"That's my son," Amelia stated, "His people grow up fast," she quickly 'explained' the apparent age of her son and once more Niana pouted but turned the subject to Riven.  
  
"He's cute too, hair's kinda long. That's been out of style since the middle ages!"  
  
"That's Riven. He's available, but good luck trying to get his attention. He's a bit flighty sometimes, can't keep his attention on anything for more then ten seconds unless it's business."  
  
Niana laughed, "That's good! Wouldn't do if he were to wander off during duty or something. Is there a chance you could introduce me to him?"  
  
Amelia's eyes darted around the area, finding her namesake dancing with some random guy, then toward Riven just in time to see him go pale and sway somewhat. "Perhaps, he's got a hard job and generally the only time I ever see my husband off duty is at night."  
  
Niana giggled and started talking about random girlly things and Amelia took the chance to press the hidden button on her wrist unit and mumble softly, ~"Riv, you alright there?"~  
  
~"I.. I'm alright,"~ came the somewhat wavering reply. ~"I just had a vision. I'm alright now,"~ his voice firmed and he gave a slight smile at her, his color returned as well.  
  
~"What happened?"~ Grey's voice returned when Amelia was forced to reassure Niana that she was just muttering to herself.  
  
Riven shook his head slightly, ~"I saw the princess.. all black, like something evil had taken over standing beside Zelgadis with Amelia stabbed in the back.."~ He gave a rueful shrug and said regretfully, ~"I'm sorry, I guess I shouldn't eat strange things anymore."~ Grey looked slightly annoyed and the chatter over the wrist units died down.  
  
The guests were left to wonder what had happened that caused the Elite's to become agitated and their speculation fluttered about Amelia's ears. "Maybe there's someone here..." and a general fear seemed to hover in the air for the rest of the night though there was no other indication that there was anything wrong. Finally, the princess went to bed, which was a relief to her guards. Amelia was tired, she hated high heels, and court manners.  
  
She flopped into the bed, her dress and shoes still on, she lay still for a long time, unaware of when she actually fell asleep. Dimly, she remembered Grey rolling her over and getting her out of her clothes and undoing her hair before tucking in behind her. She was glad he was there.  
  
***** 


	19. Iiiit's Chapter 21!! ^_^

I'm sorry guys, I went on that trip and it just drained me completely, it was terrible too! I didn't have much fun, most of the time was spent wanting to murder someone violently for being annoying. I didn't give in to those Mazoku-like tendencies and instead felt miserable the whole trip. It rained and was cold, and we went to a theme park with the weather like that... most of the rides got shut down for the day, not to mention that I don't like roller coasters...  
  
Chapter 21  
  
Need a BREAK?  
  
Amelia XXXIX fumed and slammed her foot onto the floor, swinging a fist up in her anger, "I want to go OUT!" she shouted loudly at her father where he sat on the other side of the table from her. He'd been minding his own business, drinking his morning tea when his daughter had burst in demanding to go to the mall. "I'm eighteen now and I want to go to the Mall! Everyone ELSE gets to go out and do stuff!"  
  
"But..dear, you're the princess and-"  
  
"I'll bring Riven and Amelia with me!" she fumed, "They'll be protection enough!! Then maybe I could get some actually fashionable off-duty clothes for Riven, I can't believe he actually wears that bedsheet!" All eyes turned toward Riven who was in fact present at this little exchange even if he was technically off-duty at the time, he seemed to enjoy being in the way for some reason.  
  
As of the moment, he was wearing a set of robes that looked incredibly like the ones he'd died in, though without the incredibly large shoulder guards. He'd thankfully ditched THOSE after the first run in with the princess on the matter of his leisure dress.  
  
"Honey- why don't you just get the tailors to-"  
  
"NO! I want to hang out with my friends!!" The princess fumed waving her fist around before slamming it on the table, causing the china to rattle.  
  
The king bowed his head over his teacup regretfully, "You know that I would be devastated if anything were to happen to you," he murmured softly, but Amelia XXXIX wasn't impressed.  
  
Her namesake stepped forward, "She'll be perfectly safe, your highness," Amelia stated, "Riven and I will take good care of her." Finally, the king nodded. The princess smirked triumphantly and swirled around, marking out the door with her two assigned guards behind her.  
  
"Ugh, Amelia, why'd you have to go and agree to that? Completely ruined my day off," Riven complained, shoulders sagging as he walked with his back hunched and a slight frown and glare on his face.  
  
Amelia laughed. "Because.. I'd like to see you out of that out of date wedding dress too!" she winked, "You're a handsome man, Riven, you shouldn't put off girls with how you dress. It's a terrible shame!"  
  
Hurriedly, Riven straightened, "And what if that's what I wanted to do?" he asked, though there seemed to be a bit of a gleam in his eyes.  
  
The other Elite laughed even more, "Yeah right, Riv, we've ALL seen you eyeing the servants! Especially the princess's chambermaid." Amelia elbowed him in the side, smirking at his deep blush. He was so easy to tease when it came to things like that- just like Zelgadis.  
  
"What's the point of looking nice if they don't like me for who I am?" he asked, still blushing and trying to pretend he wasn't. Sadly, he still had a thing with 'being himself' which freaked Grey out most of the time due to his occasional lapses into 'Rezo-like' behavior. The robes were definitely Rezo-like.  
  
"Then find some new clothes that show what you're like. The robes were fine in our time, but now they're just...odd."  
  
The princess swirled around then, smirking and putting her hands on her hips. "And you're NOT going to get any more dresses! I won't let you!"  
  
Riven hunched down once more in defeat.  
  
****  
  
Amelia XXXIX smirked as they entered the fabled Mall with her entourage of guards and noble "friends". Amelia was dressed in some of the princess's old clothes that fit and were nicer then her own off duty clothes, which consisted mostly of loose pants and shirt sets. Riven had been outfitted in some mix-matched things that fit but didn't belong to any one style but it was better than his robes. The princess had explained that the shopping trip was to get him some new clothes and her "friends" were happy to join her, mostly the group was girls, but one was a guy who was obviously homosexual.  
  
Riven felt outnumbered by the feminine aura and he felt like he was going to have flashbacks of when he was with Eris, but thankfully his ex-enemy kept him from suddenly loosing it and blasting everyone by a careful touch on his arm from time to time.  
  
"Is he alright?" asked one of the girls, a mint-haired girl who wasn't very endowed but wore a black and gold shirt with a low collar. "He's gone so pale!"  
  
Amelia, the Elite, gave a smile in return, "He's alright, just-"  
  
Riven interrupted, "Yeah, I'll be alright, I just saw something, that's all."  
  
"Saw what?" Another girl, with dark green hair asked, she was rather delicate, but tom-boyish in a way, but her nerve didn't extend beyond fighting off assassins.  
  
Once more, Riven rubbed the back of his neck, "Ah, just something reminded me of my past, that's all. I'll be fine, really. Don't worry, have fun, that's what we're here for, right?"  
  
"Yeah, and to dress you up in stuff!" The boy spoke up, he also had long hair, but it was only down to his shoulders and flowed in waves of gold. "Was your past bad?" he asked, moving closer to Riven and grabbing his hand, leaning against the taller man's chest.  
  
The girls giggled at their flirtatious companion as he tried to make a pass on Riven. "Ah- yes- um-" the tall mage's eyes were wide as he tried to back up and shake the guy off his arm.  
  
"Oh how tragic!" the mint-haired girl exclaimed. "Don't you think so, Miwan?" she asked her green-haired companion who nodded excitedly.  
  
"Do tell us!" breathed the blonde boy.  
  
Finally, Riven freed himself from the blonde's clasp. "Absolutely not," he stated harshly. "Sometimes it's better to just leave things buried," he glowered at them all, including the two Amelia's who hadn't participated, namely just because they hadn't come to his rescue.  
  
Amelia XXXIX smirked at him and looped her arm with his, dragging him along, "Come on then, we've got some money to spend!!"  
  
They hit all the fashionable clothing stores, including ones for girls, Riven insisted on NOT entering those ones and just stood guard outside, blushing deeply with his arms crossed on his chest. They'd tried to get him to cut his hair into a flared wave style but upon seeing the picture he freaked and they couldn't get him near the hair salon.  
  
Once they'd gotten a few good outfits for him, they forced him to change into one of them in the store and stick his other clothes into the bag. Riven had meanwhile fallen into an icy silence only speaking when spoken too and when asked direct questions he would answer in as few words as possible. The boy, who's name was Makodo, finally got the hint and stopped flirting with him as much but that didn't stop Machina and Miwan from eyeing him, which he seemed to receive in a better light then Makodo's comments. The princess beamed as her following praised her good tastes when it came to shopping. Amelia stayed rather quiet as well, having an odd feeling.  
  
***  
  
Kiza Reid smiled as she gazed upon her easy target. The Princess Amelia XXXIX. She was apparently unguarded and far too much money to even notice that any of it was gone. She waited quietly as they passed her. They were traveling on the first floor, headed towards the front doors when she struck, moving out of her hiding place and looking lost. She turned and slammed directly into the princess, sweeping the girl's wallet out in the confusion.  
  
"I'm so sorry!" Kiza gasped, looking so cute and innocent with wide blue eyes under a mop of velvety violet hair. "I- didn't mean to-" Riven suddenly stopped paying attention, his eyes going glassy for a moment as he gazed at Kiza.  
  
Amelia turned toward him, ~"What happened?"~  
  
~"I saw..."~ he shook his head firmly, the image of the violet haired girl reasserting itself over that of the redheaded Lina Inverse. ~"I saw-"~ in a sudden lingual shift, he continued, "oh shit!" Swiftly, he threw a barrier around them as the blast came from all directions. At least thirty Mazoku appeared. They stood smirking, thinking they had the group surrounded, and they did, except for the small stage that was in the middle of the floor with a live microphone fallen over from where the singer who had been performing there had dashed away in fright. As had all the others milling around the area. Thankfully, that included the paparazzi.  
  
Amelia gazed around at their enemy, not finding Xelloss with them. ~"There's too many for us,"~ Riven said from behind her where he stood with the princess held firmly against his chest. ~"I can try a teleport spell, but I've never done it with anyone other than myself before- Amelia?"~ He looked over his shoulder to find that his partner had not been there to even here him. Briefly, he scowled. Amelia dashed for the hole in the Mazoku's ring of assault, grabbing up the microphone and clearing her throat, seeming to take a random pitch and started singing  
  
"Koi ni koi suru, onna no ko ni wa  
  
Mabushisugiru no MY DAARLIN!  
  
Kirakira RUUJU (Akogare DORIIMU)  
  
PINKU no PIICHI  
  
Todoite hoshii no otome no inori"  
  
"What?! Is she CRAZY?!" Amelia XXXIX raged, kicking her feet in fury. "YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO KILL THEM! NOT ENTERTAIN THEM!!" She glared at Riven, "Do your job Damnit!"  
  
Riven's face was a mask of absolute fury. "Don't EVER order me around like that," he stated, "Or I might forget who's side I'm really on." There seemed to be a note of experience behind his words and it immediately caused the princess to shut her mouth in shock.  
  
Kiza stared in horror, feeling something burning in her chest at the thought that something to terrifying had her at it's mercy. But also, the words to that song.. they were so familiar even if they'd never been sung in this time and no one could understand what was being said.  
  
Finally, she sprang into action as Amelia looked nervously at the Mazoku who were advancing on her and her one-woman show. Kiza leapt onto the stage and snatched the microphone from Amelia stating, "THIS is how it's sung!" and she launched into the next verse of the song.  
  
"Yozora ni ukabu gin no kofune  
  
Suki to kirai no namima ni yureru  
  
Chiisana mune o kyunkyun kogashi  
  
Kokoro wa tobu no anata no moto ni  
  
Onegai todoite  
  
Otome no negai  
  
Zembu agechau kirei na watashi"  
  
Amelia sang with more courage then, her movements and voice matching with that of the tiny thief-girl's. Colored lights began to sparkle around them from the song's spell, dazzling those watching and the absolute cuteness of the song caused many of the Mazoku to twitch in horror of their own, finally disappearing, running from the fight before it even began.  
  
Riven stood and stared with his mouth open at Kiza, once more seeing Lina Inverse overlaying her new body. At the end of the song, he had let go of Amelia XXXIX completely. Brightly, he applauded and shouted, "Hey Lina! I didn't know you could sing! Still rather un-endowed, though, aren't you?"  
  
As the cherry blossom petals fluttered down, Kiza clenched her fists, glowing red and finally, she brought up one hand in a wide arc pointing out her fingers and trailing the flame through the air. ~"BURSTBRONDO!!"~ she howled in rage. Kopii's eyes widened as the air around him exploded and he was blown into the air and backwards onto the second story balcony. Amelia XXXIX had managed to dive for cover just in time to keep from suffering, but she stared upwards in wonder before looking at the thief, who was staring at her hands. "How did I do that?!"  
  
"Oh no! Is Riven alright?" asked Machina worriedly, staring up at the second story balcony with her hands clasped together against her breast.  
  
Slowly, Riven pulled himself up from the floor, bracing himself on the railing, his hair and clothes still sizzling. "Everything's alright up here..." he said as if he'd purposefully gone up to check things out. Then he slid back down out of sight.  
  
Amelia beamed and glomped onto Kiza, "Oh this is so wonderful!!" she exclaimed, hugging Kiza tighter, "Lina-san! I've missed you so much! We've got a chance now! Xelloss is leading a Mazoku army to destroy everything!"  
  
"Get OFF me!" Kiza shouted, finally shoving Amelia off and glaring, "What the HELL are you talking about?!"  
  
"Little girls shouldn't talk like that," Riven stated as he landed from levitating down from the second story, apparently having recovered from his recent blasting. Kiza swirled around and punched him just below the ribs. "But of course YOU never followed rules like that..." he gasped as he hunched over in pain.  
  
"Least I didn't hit you below the belt, buster, shut up before I hurt you more!" Kiza shouted at him, anger flaring in her eyes once more. Hurriedly, Riven moved away from her, keeping his mouth firmly shut, apparently, he'd remembered what happened LAST time he messed with her.  
  
Amelia XXXIX folded her arms on her chest and glowered at them in anger. "Let's get out of here before those things come back," she stated and started toward the door. Quickly, Riven hurried after the princess as her friends followed him, trying to keep close enough that they would be protected. Kiza was pulled along by the other Elite.  
  
****  
  
Amelia XXXIX lounged in her sitting room, staring out the window at the rain, idly listening to the clock tick. Nearby, Zelan perched on the couch, reading some book he'd borrowed from Jiras. Finally, she turned toward Zelan and spoke, "So what's the story behind Riven?"  
  
Slowly, the young man lifted his head, "Why do you want to know?" he asked warily.  
  
"He gets really weird sometimes, that's all, I just want to know."  
  
The princess leaned forward somewhat, exposing the contents of her shirt and Zelan briefly wondered how they even stayed in place with how low the neckline was.  
  
"I'm not sure it's my place to tell you such things," he stated finally and was about to go back to his reading when he found her taking the book from his hands and setting it aside, he mourned loosing his place in it.  
  
Winsomely, she smiled, sliding into his lap, sliding her arms around his shoulders. "Oh come on, you can tell me.. I promise I won't tell anyone else."  
  
Zelan eyed her a moment then abruptly stood, dumping her to the floor. "I'm not a play thing, princess, I do not appreciate being treated as such."  
  
She glared at him from the floor and got to her feet. "You're no fun at all!" and she flopped back into her chair. He retrieved his book from the side table and attempted to find his page once more.  
  
After a while, Amelia XXXIX turned toward him, "Can you at least tell me how he got that scar?"  
  
He blinked, looking up from his book, "What scar?" he asked.  
  
She stood and made a gesture down her chest, "Right here," she said, "It's really weird. Surgery scars don't show like that at all, besides, it's on his back too."  
  
Zelan shifted uncomfortably, "I think you should ask him that, it's rude to talk about people when they're not around."  
  
"I'm NOT being rude!" she insisted, flopping onto the couch next to him. "I just want to know that one little thing! How did he get the scar?"  
  
The young Elite closed his eyes, sighed, and marked his place in the book before setting it aside once more. "He got stabbed," he stated.  
  
Amelia XXXIX saw that she had his full attention now and pressed closer, "But who stabbed him? why?!"  
  
"I wasn't there, but I got told the story by one who was involved. Lina Inverse stabbed him. He was trying to kill her."  
  
The princess went pale, "And he's supposed to be protecting ME!?" she demanded, standing up.  
  
"As I understand it, he had his reasons. He might not be very loyal or mentally stable but at least he's powerful and knows what he's doing. As long as you don't tick him off, he shouldn't change his mind."  
  
Amelia clutched her hands to her chest and took a step back as her sitting room door opened, Riven himself stepping in just in time to hear the tail end of that statement. "Yo," he stated. Once more, he was wearing his uniform, "Shift change, Zel," he stated but as the Chimera boy got to his feet and gathered up his book, Riven touched his shoulder, ~"Talking about me?"~ Zelan regretfully nodded.  
  
~"Wouldn't leave me alone about it. You might want to talk to her."~  
  
Riven gave a sigh and flopped down on the couch, eyeing the princess who had retreated to the other side of the room, staring at him. "You think I'm evil," he stated, watching her. "Well, perhaps that's what you'd call what I acted like back then, but I had my reasons. I'm sure you wouldn't appreciate having your mind controlled by an obsessed woman either. Would you enjoy being called Amelia Wil Tessa De Seyruun and everyone thought you were her when you weren't and the one who created you made you become her just to get revenge on the one who killed her?" The princess slowly nodded, then shook her head, unable to figure out how to answer.  
  
"It's complicated and I don't like to think about back then, it's over, what happened is over with. I died for what I did, now I'm back. Just so long as you don't order me around like I've got no choice I won't get upset and do something like Siraag."  
  
"You mean... the Dead City is YOUR fault?" she gaped.  
  
Riven shook his head, "It was destroyed once before I came along, and yes, I did created two of the craters there, but I didn't destroy Flagoon. I was told that happened after I died, done by the Hellmaster Phibrizzo, who was trying to get Lina to do the exact same thing I wanted her to do, just for different reasons."  
  
Slowly, the princess moved forward, reclaiming her seat as Riven crossed his legs nonchalantly, looking much like Grey for a moment. "And what was that? Why did you want her to do it?"  
  
He smirked slightly, "Cast the Giga Slave on me. If I could survive it, I was better than my original. I realize the idiocy of that now, but back then, I'd been driven mad by my creator and I couldn't think straight in the first place. Now... I don't know what happened really, but," he smiled brightly, "It doesn't matter," he stated in a sudden change of thought.  
  
"What doesn't matter?!" Amelia XXXIX demanded, clutching the armrests of her chair as she leaned forward, unaware of Riven's covert peeking.  
  
"Oh, just that things got fixed in my head. That's all, probably something the scientists did when they brought me back." Though Riven had a serious doubt about that. It just didn't seem right somehow, and he felt he knew the answer but couldn't quite remember it, a far different feeling from being unable to even follow a thought through at all.  
  
The princess sat back, eyeing him once more, "So who is your original?"  
  
His mood dropped like a stone and he eyed her. "That is one thing I'm not going to tell you," he stated, "I know your type, you'd use it against me to attempt to get something out of me. Just a warning: Don't even dare trying it or you'll find out what it's like to become a permanent smear on the wall." Amelia XXXIX subsided into silence once more, staring at her guard, who stared back amiably, a hint of a smile on his lips and a spark in his mismatched eyes.  
  
"You think you're in love with Grey," he said after two hours had passed and the storm had stopped.  
  
Amelia XXXIX swung her gaze toward him in shock, "What- how - that little rat Zelan told you didn't he?" she got to her feet as if she were going to pound Zelan's face in for the infraction.  
  
Riven gave a snort, "No. I figured it out for myself." He shifted in his seat, lifting a foot and pushing the princess back into her chair with it. "I suggest finding someone more available... Zelan might be interested if you fixed your attitude."  
  
She scowled, "And what about you?"  
  
"I don't like the domineering type," he replied offhandedly.  
  
Once more, she leapt to her feet, glaring, "What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded.  
  
"That I think you'd try to control me," Riven stated with a grin, "And you already know what happens when women try to do that." Amelia XXXIX went pale and sat once more.  
  
After a while, she asked, "What is your type?"  
  
"I don't know, but definitely not someone who would try to use me." Though, he really did have an idea of who he might like to be with, he didn't dare express the strange thought out loud. After all, Sylphiel was already dead and quite possibly had never forgiven him for what he did. A pity. Until he found someone like her, he figured he'd just stay single, women weren't worth that much effort anyway.  
  
Amelia XXXIX sniffled, "I want someone who's sweet and gentle but can protect me and has manners and is interesting to be around-"  
  
"Nice imagination," Riven commented, "But I highly doubt you're going to find that in Grey. He's obsessive, ill tempered, no sense of humor, everything he does is usually for his own reasons."  
  
She glared at him. "You're just trying to make me stop liking him!"  
  
"He's already taken," Riven pointed out, flicking his fingers in a dismissive gesture.  
  
"I don't CARE! I'm supposed to get what I want!"  
  
Her guard eyed her, "And who told you that?"  
  
"No one, I'm the princess, so I'm supposed to get what I want."  
  
"You sound like a spoiled brat," Riven told her firmly, kicking the wind out of her sails. "People shouldn't have to bend to one person's will. A good leader would think of her people first." He snirked slightly at quoting something Amelia- the Elite ex-princess- would say. "A good leader would set an example for her people by being what she preaches."  
  
"Are you saying I'm a bad leader?" Amelia XXXIX hissed, her eyes narrowed. At his nod, she launched herself at him, ready to claw his eyes out.  
  
Briefly, Riven got a vision of her with Xelloss, but then he had to dive out of the way of her attack. "I don't think you're all that much," the princess growled at him, "I don't think you even gave Lina Inverse that much of a fight before she stabbed you!"  
  
Riven's face settled into a bland look and he watched her attempt to charge him once more from where he stood in the center of the room. He lifted one hand, energy gathering in his palm before the blast snapped out toward the princess.  
  
****  
  
Riven stared at what his spell had done, though he really didn't feel any shock for what had happened, he felt strange, in that he had set something in motion that he was supposed to. Before him, the princess stood in shock, staring at Zelan's back. The young Chimera was before her with a hole in his chest, blood leaking from it and the color draining from his face. Slowly, Zelan collapsed to the floor.  
  
Finally, Riven shook himself into awareness, coming forward to place his hand on the wound he'd inflicted. ~"Bloody stupid,"~ he mumbled, ~"Of both of us. Perhaps her highness should be grounded for a while,"~ he said softly to Zelan as he healed the boy, fixing his clothing as well.  
  
Zelan took a shuddering breath, grabbing hold of Riven's hand, ~"I don't blame you,"~ he stated firmly, ~"She was asking for it, but I don't think you would have healed HER."~ Relieved, Riven helped Zelan to his feet and over to the couch. ~"I'll take over now, go get some rest,"~ Riven was about to protest when he nodded and left the room to the princess and Zelan.  
  
****  
  
Amelia XXXIX stood in shock, staring at Zelan's pale face, "But- why- why did you save me?" she gasped out finally. Briefly, Zelan glanced around the room, there were no signs of what had just occurred except for his slight fatigue and her shock.  
  
"Sit down," Zelan told her firmly. "I warned you not to provoke him. You're just damn lucky I was walking down the hall and heard what you said. I took the blow because I KNOW he wouldn't have healed you. No one else would have been able to heal you but him because of the type of spell he used. No one else knows that spell, no one else knows how to cure it. He's VERY powerful and you just had to test him, didn't you?"  
  
The princess stared at him, her eyes watering as she sank down into the chair she'd been seated in earlier, curling up and wrapping her arms around her legs. She really hadn't thought he would actually take a shot at her. She thought they'd been kidding when they said he was powerful.  
  
*****  
  
Grey sat in silence as he heard the report of the incident and Riven refused to meet his eyes during the recount by both Zelan and himself. Once they finished, silence rang through the room for almost a full minute until he took a breath and spoke, "I'm glad you were there to keep the situation in hand," he said to Zelan and finally looked at Riven. "Try and keep your temper next time. Now isn't a good time for us to be killing our own.  
  
"I think the problem is that no one has ever seen an actual mage-battle and they don't believe the amount of power we have. Perhaps it's a good thing, maybe it's not," Grey continued and paused for another moment. "Riven, you'll switch duties with me," he stated. "I'll deal with her highness's little crush on my own."  
  
Zelan gave a snort, he hadn't told, Riven hadn't told, Grey had just known on his own. "Dismissed," Grey stated and watched as the two left.  
  
"Cephied!" Riven breathed, "I thought he was going to kill me for that!"  
  
Zelan gave a smirk, "Well, seeing as how you fixed what you did and more and how SHE was being a little brat, he probably understood more then you think. At least you won't have to be near her for a while now," the boy stated, referring to Riven's new assignment times.  
  
"Yeah," he agreed softly. A pat on his arm made him lift his eyes to look at Zelan's encouraging smile and he forced a smile onto his own lips in return. At an intersection, they parted ways.  
  
~"Is it just me, or does he look pale?"~ Zelan asked on a private channel to his father.  
  
~"No, it's not just you. Just watch him."~  
  
~"So you don't know what's wrong? It's not what happened, he's just been getting worse since he got here."~ Zelan stated, having been around to see him upon his arrival.  
  
Grey's voice returned carefully, ~"I noticed, and no, I have no clue. I'll talk to him about it- or better yet, your mother can."~  
  
**** 


	20. Chapter 22 Ni!!

Yeah, I know it's short, but I couldn't think of anything else to write and this is important so I wanted to go ahead and post it.  
  
  
  
Chapter 22  
  
These titles generally have no connection with the story  
  
Riven was sprawled out on the grass in the garden when she found him, carefully, the ex-princess made her way over the carefully manicured lawn to sit beside him. Amelia had come to notice that he had a tendency to be found in the garden when not on duty. After a while, she realized that he was asleep so, carefully, she reached out a hand to touch his slightly sweaty forehead. There seemed to be no fever, and upon further probing by magic, she could find nothing wrong with him. In fact, he was quite healthy. Slowly, she removed her hand from his forehead and gazed up toward the dirty sky a moment.  
  
"I'm fine," his voice broke into her thoughts and she looked down at him to find his eyes focused on his face.  
  
Amelia tipped her head to the side, shifting in the grass beside him, leaning on one hand. She didn't have to tell him that she didn't believe that at all, he could tell by her expression.  
  
"I don't know," Riven mumbled, "I... just feel like I left something somewhere, something important that I really need to be complete and I left it." He wiped his face with his sleeve, "I only feel marginally better when I'm out here, but it's not quite right. I don't know what it is though."  
  
Amelia smiled at him, "Well, how about trying to remember when you started feeling like this?"  
  
Riven stared upwards once more, squinting at the grayed out sun. "When I first woke up in this time... It wasn't so bad when I was near Siraag. It's stupid, I'm sorry. I really shouldn't get worked up over things so unimportant."  
  
For a long time, she stared at his face and he avoided eye-contact with her. "You don't believe that it's not important, do you?" she asked, leaning closer to him.  
  
Tears came to his eyes unbidden, "I don't know... I keep having weird dreams and it's not like I've eaten anything weird. I don't have them frequently either, just randomly. And when I accidentally blasted Zelan- it felt right. Like that was what was supposed to happen and I keep thinking I should feel bad for it and I don't."  
  
Amelia was briefly disturbed by that, but she moved to cup his face in her hands, "No one's mad at you for that," she stated, "The princess was being a brat and provoked you, just try not to loose your temper so quickly next time. You healed Zelan and that's what matters, nothing was permanent."  
  
Riven closed his eyes and pulled his face from her grasp, rolling onto his side, his back toward her. "And I keep having dreams of Sylphiel," he said softly then.  
  
The Mage Elite settled down near him, folding her feet in a lotus style and setting her hands on her knees. "Tell me about it, Riven, maybe it'll make you feel better?"  
  
After a soft sigh, Riven was silent for almost a full minute before he spoke again, "It always starts the same.. I'm standing under Flagoon and looking out across a dead city, then it's like the tree is talking to me, but it can only show me things, it doesn't have words. It shows me the sky going grey with smoke or dust, or something, and it partially blocks out the sun, then on the horizon, there's a cloud, but it's not a cloud, it's demons eating the land and everything and black lightning etched with gold.  
  
"Then there's a black priest standing near me, but now I recognize him as Xelloss, and he's standing over three bodies shrouded in white like dead heroes. He does something to them and they get up and pull off their shrouds. They're Zelgadis, Zelan, and you. After that, you guys fight the cloud but this is where things split. Sometimes I have a dream where Sylphiel doesn't come to revive Flagoon and you loose and everything dies and returns to chaos. In the dream where she does come, she makes Flagoon sprout from the huge crater in Siraag and people come to live in Siraag and rebuild and you guys win."  
  
Amelia sat silently, listening to the story, recalling how much it sounded like Filia's prophecy of Darkstar. Riven continued, "Then sometimes when I look at you and Zelgadis when the princess is in the room I see her trying to stab you in the back while Zel is blindfolded. And just the other day, when she tried to attack me, I saw the princess and Xelloss standing hand in hand, like she'd joined him."  
  
Finally, Amelia patted his shoulder, "I don't know what to say, Riven, those are some rather disturbing dreams. Just try to not get stressed, that's all I can really offer." She gave him a hug before getting up and heading out of the garden to speak to Grey.  
  
****  
  
The princess was startled to find herself alone for the first time in almost two years. Grey was busy doing something elsewhere, Zelan was with him more than likely, Riven and Amelia were guarding her father, and that left Amelia XXXIX to herself. She smiled and twirled a bit. It was nice not being watched by anyone. Except that she still felt that someone was there.  
  
She stopped twirling and found herself face to face with a strange man who was wearing some trendy clothes, yet held a gnarled old staff. "Who are you?" she asked, trying to calm her heart from being startled. "How did you get in here?"  
  
The man drew back a bit, he had purple hair an upon his lips he wore a jaunty smile, his eyes were closed. "Why- I'm the Mysterious Priest!" he said brightly and the princess gave a snort of amusement. "As for why I'm here, it's because I could tell that you were lonely," he said, moving closer once more.  
  
"Sorry to say this, but I've got my sights set on someone else," she stated, but eyed the so called 'Mysterious Priest' with admiration. This was the first time a guy had ever been so bold with her and she liked it.  
  
The priest gave a laugh, "Oh, that's alright," he waggled a finger at her, "I came to help you get him."  
  
Amelia XXXIX's eyes widened and she clasped her hands together, "Really?! No one else will give me what I want!"  
  
Once more, the priest laughed, draping an arm over her shoulders and walking down the hall with her a ways, "I can give you a way to have him," he said conspiratorially. "All you have to do is," he murmured into her eagerly listening ear, "Keep them from finding the Priestess!" He let go of her and she stared at where he had been, blinking in confusion.  
  
Her time to herself was cut short when Zelan approached her from down the hall, frowning slightly at her.  
  
**** 


	21. Chapter 23 ~.~ sorry it's short again, w...

LOL! KellyChan and Kitty asked where Gourry was.. as if she didn't already know? oh well, visit http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_st.php?id=3172 to see some of the fanart I drew for my story.. hey, if anyone wants to draw some pics for the story too, you're welcome to! ~_^ send them to me, I wanna see them!  
  
As for Grey knowing about Sylphiel being in a new body, I don't think he does... but her part in this is.... A SECRET!!! ~_^  
  
Also.... Quick Lesson on the numbers after Amelia XXXIX's name.  
  
I = 1 // II = 2 // III = 3  
  
IV = 4 (I before V is 4, One before five.)  
  
V = 5  
  
VI = 6 (I after V is 6, Five and one.)  
  
VII = 7 // VIII = 8  
  
IX = 9 (I before X is 9, One before Ten, an alternate is VIIII)  
  
X = 10  
  
XI = 11 (I after X is 10, Ten and one.)  
  
XII = 12, and so on!  
  
Therefore, XXXIX would be '10 + 10 + 10' then '9', so it's 39! ^_^  
  
chapter 23  
  
So Lina's Back?  
  
Kiza sat in her expensively decorated room and eyed all the glittering things just LAYING out in the open. Her hands itched, but this was just too easy. She'd been here for three days, heard about the little incident where one of the princess's guards tried to blast her and blasted one of the other guards instead and he hadn't gotten fired on the spot for it. In fact, the whole group seemed to be completely wacked out. The really tall maroon haired guy kept calling her 'Lina' and looking at her as if he saw something other than what was really there, the dark haired- and only woman of the group- occasionally called her 'Lina' but tried not to, as if the name slipped. The boy who couldn't have been more than thirteen didn't ever talk to her though he looked like he wanted to, and the older weird dude didn't talk to her at all, didn't look like he wanted to talk to her, and didn't even make an effort to make her feel welcome, as if he didn't believe she was this 'Lina' girl at all.  
  
She flopped back on her silk sheeted bed and stared at the ceiling. "I could always take a bath," she stated in response to her unvoiced comment of 'I'm bored'. Kiza got up, passing the vanity mirror on the way toward the bathroom. A quick glance at her deep violet hair and shimmering blue eyes was enough to boost her ego before she headed off to cleanse.  
  
For a while, she sat in the water, letting her long curls float before she dunked her head under completely and set about using an extraordinary amount of soap on herself. After a time, she got out of the tub, wrapping a towel around herself, humming softly some odd tune that popped into her head.  
  
"Hmm.. very nice," a voice broke into her thoughts and Kiza swirled around to stare at the purple haired man with a staff who stood in her room.  
  
"PERVERT!!!!" she immediately shrieked.  
  
****  
  
The palace shook with the energy of the explosion and Grey hurriedly dashed down the halls, he being the one closest one to the area. He easily located the exact room in which the explosion had occurred by the smoke seeping out from under the door. The back of his mind noted it was one of the guest rooms as he slammed the door open, a spell ready in his palms.  
  
The scene that opened before him made him come to a skidding halt, then fall on his face. Kiza stood clad in nothing but a towel, breath heaving and standing with her feet set far apart, knees bent and arms away from her sides like some football player. Before the tiny girl was a hole Filia in dragon form could have flown in through. It WAS a lovely view of the gardens, but....  
  
Slowly, Kiza turned her head to glower over her shoulder at Grey, "So YOU wanna get a free peek too, HUH?!" she raged, swirling around- throwing her hands toward him. The air rippled and Grey closed his eyes just before the blast struck, blowing a matching hole in the other side of the hallway.  
  
He slammed into another wall and through it then recalled sliding on a smoothly polished floor until he stopped, he lay there with his arms crossed on his chest, a bland expression on his face as he stared up at the front hall ceiling. Finally, the princess rushed to his side and kneeled in her fancy dress. "What happened?!" she gasped, her blue eyes wide as she stared at the huge holes.  
  
It wasn't long before the king appeared with Riven nearby. The copied Red Priest stared at the holes a moment as well before giving a soft snigger.  
  
"Riven, Shut up," Grey stated as he slowly got off the floor and inspected his clothes, they were tattered and burnt. "And at least fix the damage... damn, they just don't make clothes like they used to," he muttered the last almost absently.  
  
Still sniggering, Riven tossed a spell at Grey, his clothes seeming to shift backward in time, unburning and unripping until they were whole. Next, Riven stepped through the first of the holes in the trail of destruction, casting another spell that caused even the tiny pieces of dust and glass to fly back into place as if the incident had never happened. It was assumed that he'd done the same for all the damage, for it was gone before the next maid showed up. Kiza showed up not that long after, fully dressed and still fuming. Riven moved in silently behind her, not drawing much attention to his return. Sadly, the princess and king were still gaping at the newly fixed wall.  
  
"First off, WHO was that man!" she shouted upon entering the front hall and scowling at them all as if SHE were the princess, not Amelia XXXIX.  
  
"What did he look like?" Amelia asked as she entered the room with Zelan behind her.  
  
Kiza whirled to face the Elite, "He had short purple hair and a freaky stick with a red jewel on it!" she exclaimed and Grey became somber, the princess glanced around nervously, Zelan's eye twitched and only the female Mage Elite seemed unaffected, except for the king, who had no clue what was going on and Riven who didn't know Xelloss's notoriety of sneaking into girl's rooms while they just HAPPEN to be undressed. "WELL? Who WAS he?!"  
  
"That was Xelloss, our main enemy," Grey stated finally. Amelia XXXIX softly murmured the name under her breath, as if matching a name to a face she had already seen, catching Zelan's attention though he didn't speak. "He's far more dangerous than he looks. Try not to give him any information if you happen to see him."  
  
"WHY is he just running loose in the palace?!" Kiza demanded, waving her fists and stomping a foot in cute rage.  
  
Amelia spoke up then, a slight smile on her lips, "Because, Kiza, there are no doors that can bar him. He's a Mazoku, both a general and priest of the Greater Beastmaster: Zellas Metallum." Her smile fell though and she flicked her gaze toward Riven for a moment though he didn't meet her eyes. "We really have no way of defeating him unless someone were to cast the Giga Slave, or something else came up..."  
  
"Ouu!!!" Wryan suddenly interjected upon hearing that. He'd been just out of sight, listening in, and now he dashed into the room. "_I'VE_ got the power to cast that spell!" he said and nudged Grey a bit.  
  
The Chimera glowered, "No," he said firmly. "Besides, the spirit of Lina Inverse is here already, so teaching you that spell would be useless."  
  
Wryan glowered, "What can a spirit do?! It's just a ghost-" he shut up when he noticed Kiza. "oh..." he said softly.  
  
"Oh, he says..." Zelan muttered softly, "Yes, you idiot, that's Lina in a new body. Who ELSE would be blowing holes in the walls?"  
  
Wryan looked toward Zelan first, then Riven, who shook his head, then he looked back at Kiza. "But I don't know any spells!" Kiza protested. "I don't know how I blasted the walls. It just comes when I get pissed!"  
  
Wryan smirked, "Ha! So you'll have to have someone able to cast it-"  
  
"I can." All eyes turned toward Riven and he shifted somewhat nervously, "Yes, I know how to cast it," he stated firmly, "It's one of the spells R...HE knew..." Grey twitched, as did Riven. Neither had very good experiences with Rezo.  
  
The redhead pouted, then pounced upon Riven, "Hey, you know a LOT of spells, don't you?" At Riven's nervous nod, Wryan continued, "Teach me some!"  
  
"Oh! I want to learn too!" Amelia XXXIX stated, raising a hand excitedly and bouncing on her toes. This had a slightly adverse affect on the front of her dress, though only Zelan noticed it or even liked it.  
  
Grey eyed the two beggars, then looked at his lover, then locked eyes with Riven, gave a shrug and turned to leave, "In any case, the show is over, we should get back to work."  
  
Wryan and Amelia XXXIX ignored Grey's words and continued to plead, tiptoeing up to Riven with their hands clasped together. "Please? Please- please-please-please??!!!"  
  
The disturbed Mage Elite stared at them, then backed away, "No, leave me alone..." he half-whined and with a quick focusing of his power, he disappeared into another part of the palace to escape their pleas. 


	22. Love is in the air?

Erm. Misread that one review asking about Sylphiel, anyway, no one really is supposed to know there's a reincarnation of her yet, just an attempt at foreshadowing. O.o;;; I dunno how to do that quite yet, so that's why I write Fanfics, to practice stuff like plot, characters, and whatnot. Oh well, it's practically obvious anyway, but I'll still try to give the plot some evil little twists.  
  
WAHAHAHAHA!! Gourry is not Wryan, ^_~;;; Wryan is randomly related to Lina and Gourry by way that Lina and Gourry had a daughter and a son (after Zelan died). Their daughter was named Glory Inverse, their son Liam Gabriev. Glory had a son after that who she named Inverse and then the names reverted back to the way they normally are, the kid taking their father's name. So both the Gabrievs and Inverses are related to Gourry and Lina.  
  
Amelia XXXIX is related to Amelia by Amelia's half brother. I would tell you more, but that's practically the entire plot to 'Fall of the Chimera', which is the companion story to this one.  
  
Chapter 24  
  
Love in the air?  
  
Riven stood beside the street with Kiza, he was leaning against a lamp post as the short violet haired girl with a bad temper tried to get a cab to stop. None would, though, and she had wasted almost an hour attempting to get one to stop. "DAMN IT!"  
  
"Little girls shouldn't talk like that," he stated softly, sounding bored as he could.  
  
She whirled on him, glaring deeply, "You're such a pompous ass! Why aren't you helping me?!"  
  
"Because I'm waiting for you to realize there's a far better and easier, not to forget cheaper, way than getting a cab."  
  
"I'm NOT walking!" Kiza howled in rage and clenched her fists, about to attack her mage companion. Riven rolled his eyes and shifted slightly on the lamp post, aware of people looking at them curiously. "Why did you insist on going off on your own anyway?!" she demanded of him then, "So what if it's your day off! There's no point to this! It's not like you even looked for anything in the stores!"  
  
"You didn't have to follow me," he pointed out softly.  
  
Kiza fumed, "You act just like Grey," she stated firmly.  
  
Briefly, he flashed a smile at the short young woman. "Maybe because I'm vaguely related to him?" he offered. She didn't look convinced and he shrugged. She could believe if she wanted or not.  
  
"HELP! Please! Someone help!" a feminine voice yelled from across the street. Riven perked up, looking over the tops of the cars. "He stole my purse!" a woman with strawberry red hair straight down to her mid shoulders cried, pointing in the direction of a man running away from her clutching a bag to his chest.  
  
Riven smirked to himself. "Freeze Arrow!" he cast first, aiming at the thief. His shot hit the ground and climbed up the man's legs, to his hips and finally to his shoulders, stopping him in mid-step. Next, Riven grabbed Kiza around the waist, "Levitation," he stated and lifted off the ground, flying over the traffic in the road and landed on the sidewalk once more. Setting Kiza back on her feet, he nonchalantly walked to the man who still clutched the purse in one hand, plucked it from his shivering fingers and turned, heading back to the small, thin but well built young woman who wore a business suit of soft green. "Yours, I believe?" he said, holding the purse out to her with a smile.  
  
The woman's eyes were a amythist violet, a lighter shade than Kiza's hair, and very wide. Slowly, she claimed her purse from his grip and managed to gather a breath to speak, but he'd already turned his back to her, going back to the thief. "Flare arrow," he cast, melting the ice and singing the teenage would be purse thief slightly. "You're under arrest for attempted theft. And even if I'm technically off duty right now, you can argue with me and find out what I'm like when I get mad," Riven gave a smile as he pulled the teenage boy to his feet. "Kiz, we've gotta make a little side trip now," he said brightly and the violet haired girl slowly made her way over to be grabbed around the waist by Riven.  
  
"What the hell ARE you?!" the boy squawked finally and tried to pull free of the maroon haired man's grip.  
  
"A Mage Elite," he stated in a superior fashion, "Rei Wing," and they lifted upwards into the sky as if gravity were nothing.  
  
*****  
  
Mira stood gaping, she hadn't even gotten to thank him... In her chest, her heart fluttered- almost like it had that day Brian had asked her to marry him. Almost. She remembered the day she found him cheating on her and that particular flutter had vanished when she threw his ring at him. This new flutter wouldn't go away, though. Dimly, she realized that people were staring at her and she turned, clutching her purse against her chest as she walked toward her office building.  
  
It wasn't that far down the street, only another block and she walked under the large stylized relief carving of a tree with the sun in its branches. The dull interior of the high-rise office building lobby greeted her upon entering and she saw the receptionist glare at her as she entered the elevator, pressing the button for the forty-fifth floor.  
  
Once more, her mind returned to the incident. She hadn't really expected anyone to answer her call for help, certainly not a Mage Elite, out of nowhere like some sort of superhero of legend. The elevator gave a soft ding and the doors opened at the sixteenth floor. Another passenger stepped in.  
  
"What're YOU smiling about," asked the savvy voice of Quintana Prall, also known as just Quint. She was a tall and well built woman with short rich chocolate brown hair that was cut short and styled into spikes, her eyes were an emerald green, shimmering like those fake jewels people wore when real emeralds were too much.  
  
Mira blushed, looking down at the floor, "I- It's just... Someone tried to steal my purse this morning..."  
  
Quint curled her lip slightly as a look of confusion crossed her handsome features, "And that's something to smile about? Did you beat the crap out of them or something?" That amused glimmer rekindled in her eyes as she leaned over to leer over her much shorter friend.  
  
The blush grew deeper as Mira felt her friend's full C cup press against her shoulder, "Quint- stop, you're suffocating me!" she claimed and scooted away from her friend in a pale yellow skirt suit, much like the one Mira was wearing, except that Quint wore it in a much sexier way. "No, I didn't have to beat him up.. someone...did it for me."  
  
Quint clapped her hands together immediately, her eyes sparkling, if Quint was anything, she was a sap for romantic stories. "Oh my GOSH!" she gushed, "That's so fricken amazing!" she leapt forward, putting her palms against the elevator wall on either side of Mira's shoulders, "You're going to tell me EVERYTHING!" she said forcefully, her excitement barely contained.  
  
"Quint! You're in my space again!" Mira complained, trying to push at her taller friend. The elevator dinged softly and the doors opened, they were only at the fortieth floor. Another woman stepped in, eyed Quint and Mira and smirked slightly.  
  
Reluctantly, Quint backed off. "You're still telling me EVERYTHING!"  
  
"Alright! Just don't get all over me again, you dike," Mira stated brushing invisible wrinkles out of her skirt.  
  
The chocolate haired woman smirked, posing somewhat, "You're just jealous," she stated, fluttering her lashes at the other passenger in the elevator. Quint whirled on Mira once more, "What did he look like? Was he hot?"  
  
"You don't LIKE guys, remember?" Mira pointed out, blushing faintly.  
  
Quint stomped her high-heeled foot, "Ouu! That doesn't matter! What did he look like?!"  
  
"He had long maroon hair- it was down to his butt-"  
  
Immediately, Quint interrupted, "Oh wow! A guy who's not afraid to show his feminine side! What about his ass? Was it tight?"  
  
Mira shoved at Quint once more as the woman had invaded her friend's personal space once more, "I wasn't looking at that!" she exclaimed, "I was too busy gawking at what he was doing to look at things like that!"  
  
"What did he do?" asked their other companion curiously, a woman with light green hair down to her shoulders though she kept it tied into a ponytail high on her head, two curls on either side of her face.  
  
Quint whirled to face the woman, one of their coworkers who's name was Aliel, "Someone tried to steal her purse and some guy got it back for her! Isn't that SO ROMANTIC!?"  
  
"God, Quint, you haven't heard the whole story and you're already spreading it," Mira moaned.  
  
Aliel smiled slightly, "Then tell the rest of it?" she offered.  
  
The elevator rang once more and they had arrived at the forty-fifth floor, and though Aliel had meant to go to the forty-seventh, the chance to hear some interesting gossip was too good to pass up. Mira blushed deeply as she moved past Quint and Aliel and into the maze of desks that was the floor on which she worked. "Alright. I was on my way here when some kid came past and snatched my purse and I just- screamed. I don't know why I even bothered to, but I did." Mira shook her head as she sat down at her own desk, looking up at Aliel and Quint who waited eagerly for her to continue. "Then suddenly the kid was frozen to the ground and from the other side of the street comes this guy flying over the cars and lands on the sidewalk with some scabby punk girl in one arm. He FLEW I swear it by my life that he actually flew! He went and got my purse from the kid who was up to his shoulders in ice and gave it to me then turned and blasted the kid with fire and grabbed him up, grabbed up the short girl he brought with him, then flew off again!"  
  
"THAT was it? He didn't say anything?!" Quint demanded, slamming her hands on the desk and making several people nearby start and look over nervously.  
  
Mira shook her head, "Yes, he said some stuff, but-"  
  
"TELL ME!" Quint demanded immediately, her eyes wide as she leaned closer.  
  
"Agh! Save your charms for someone interested Quint!" Mira exclaimed, covering her eyes with her hands. Belatedly, the taller woman pulled back, tugging her suit jacket over her cleavage.  
  
"Okay, I'm covered, now TELL me!" Aliel smirked, perching on the edge of Mira's desk, her arms crossed over her modest breasts as she listened intently for every drop of information to spread around the office.  
  
The redhead sighed, "Alright, he said... 'Yours, I believe,' when he gave me my purse back and then told the kid he was under arrest for attempted theft and that even if he was off duty the kid could argue and he'd get to see him mad. And then the kid asked what he was and he said something about being a Mage Elite-"  
  
"Oh my gosh!" another voice broke in, Hershey- as she was called most often, a girl of brown skin, brown eyes, and brown hair leaned closer, "I've heard of them!" she said, "They're supposed to be some sort of team of people who somehow know actual magic!"  
  
Yet another voice joined in, "I heard that too," Chris, a man in his early thirties with slightly graying hair and brown eyes stated as he made his way over, holding a coffee cup. "Supposed to be assigned to protect the king and crown princess from assassins."  
  
Hershey spoke up again, her eyes sparkling, "Wow! Mira was saved by a real life wonder-man!"  
  
"I think that's 'superman'," Aliel corrected absently, though a smirk rested on her pale-pink lips.  
  
Quint grinned widely, planting her fists on her hips frimly, "And now with THAT information- I will get his name and address and-"  
  
"QUINT! No! My god! You can't do that to him- I mean-" Mira protested, eyes wild with panic as the story began to spread like wildfire through the entire floor and probably over the phone system to other floors as well.  
  
The tall lesbian smirked and looked at Hershey and Aliel, "All those in favor of getting Mira a good man raise your hand!" she stated and three hands raised immediately. Mira covered her face with her hands, blushing so deeply she felt light-headed. Aliel stood and smirked at Quint with a slight wink, a silent promise to use her own little ways to get information about this mysterious man. She turned and headed back toward the elevator. Hershey was already tapping away on her computer, a wicked grin on her lips.  
  
A heavy hand slapped down on Mira's shoulder and she looked up into Quint's face, "Now now, ANYONE's gotta be better than Brian," she stated firmly, "Besides, you've been single too long, and you've made it clear you don't want me, so..."  
  
"You're so manipulative!" Mira accused, though the back of her mind wondered at what wonderful friends she had.  
  
***** 


	23. Love in the air (continued)

Not more than a swallow's flight away- an unladen swallow that is, more than two laden swallow's flights- anyway this is another scene in which there's some lovely acting and although there's no swallows I think you can hear some starlings in the background....  
  
(MONTY PYTHON RULZ!)  
  
Chapter 25  
  
Love In the Air (Continued)  
  
In only a few days from that morning she'd had her purse taken and returned, Mira had been asked to repeat the story of her savior thousands of times, most of the women on the floor were determined to find information on the guy and Mira was now the major 'project'.  
  
Mira closed her apartment door with a sigh and dropped her purse on the table beside the door, as it was there for just that reason. She dropped her keys on the table as well, he coat was hung on the hook above the table. Tiredly, she removed her shoes, kicking them in a random direction, next, her hair was let loose from the pins she had it in, and she flopped onto the tan couch before her modestly sized TV. Silence rang through her apartment and she let it.  
  
The almost annoying sound of the phone ringing startled her and she sat up, reaching for the hand receiver. "Hello?" she asked.  
  
"Turn on your TV NOW!!" it was Quint's voice, excited as always, "Channel nine!"  
  
"What is it now? Some fashion show?" Mira asked as her other hand obediently reached for the remote, turning on the screen and then flipping through the channels.  
  
Quint laughed, "Even better," she said, "Is that him? The guy beside the king?" she demanded to know. Mira's mind went blank as the scene flipped from the face of a reporter talking about the public statement the king was making to his royal highness, and yes, standing on either side of him were Elite's, one of which was definitely the man who had returned her purse. "Check out the other guy," Quint continued when she got no answer, "haven't seen anyone like THAT before. Still cute though!"  
  
"Shh!" Mira told Quint and listened to the King's words.  
  
"-New sect of the Imperial Guard, the Mage Elite's!" There was cheering and the camera focused on the strange rock-looking guy. He stood with a slight scowl on his face. Next, they focused on the maroon-haired man who gave a cheezy 'Hi Mom' type grin and waved somewhat. Standing around the room were other Elite's and the camera focused on them one by one. Only one was a woman, and she looked rather like the princess. Another was a younger looking version of the scowling man beside the king, he wore a rather blank expression, though it was slightly obvious he wasn't enjoying the stares. The king finished his speech and turned, leaving, his guards following, ever-watchful of the crowd and the reporter returned to the screen, speculating about where these strange people who supposedly had magic had come from.  
  
Mira turned off her TV. "What a hottie!" Quint gushed on the phone and the redhead realized she still had the receiver held against her ear.  
  
"You don't like guys, remember?" Mira reminded.  
  
Quint made a rude noise, "I'm allowed to look!" she said, "There's no rule that says I've gotta be exclusive! Besides, he's got long hair! Such pretty hair too! You two would look so cute together!"  
  
"Quint!" Mira protested immediately, jumping to her feet as if to put more force behind her words, "There was absolutely nothing that happened that could mean he'd ever be interested in me!"  
  
"Then we'll just have to give him a better look at you."  
  
"You're impossible!"  
  
Quint laughed, almost maniacally and stated, "That I am! See you tomorrow!" and the phone went dead. Mira slammed the receiver down in frustration and flopped back down on the couch, taking one of the couch cushions and covering her head with it.  
  
****  
  
~"Make friends,"~ Riven murmured to himself as he walked down the sidewalk of the city outside the palace. Amelia had told him not that long ago that he should go out and make friends with some people other than them. ~"How do I do that?!"~ he frowned faintly and stuffed his hands in his pockets. ~"HE never had any friends, I can't use that as any sort of guide on how to do it. Amelia didn't tell me how to do it..."~ His frown grew deeper when the sky demons decided to flush the giant toilet in the clouds. Almost immediately, he was soaked, but he knew that was easily fixed. Riven moved under an overhang in front of a store where a woman already huddled, attempting to wring out her hair, though she wasn't doing very well. ~"Might as well.."~ he mumbled and after casting a time-reverse spell to dry himself off, cast it upon her, returning her to how she had been before the rain started.  
  
She blinked in shock, then lifted her amethyst eyes, "Ah-" she opened her mouth to speak but found her voice gone.  
  
Riven smiled at her, "Hi," he said, then looked around nervously, "Rather wet, huh?"  
  
"Um... yes.. I-" she pushed her straight red hair back over her shoulders, "I never got to thank you-" she started.  
  
Curiously, Riven looked at her once more, "Oh yeah! You're that lady. Don't worry about thanking me. I was bored."  
  
She blushed faintly and gave a slight laugh, "So... boredom causes you to go out saving random damsels in distress?"  
  
Riven shrugged, "Well, better than causing chaos and distraction, I suppose." He chewed on his lip a moment as he watched the rain and cars move past on the road, these cars were ground vehicles, with tires, despite having vehicles able to fly, there was still a need for wheels. He turned toward her, "I'm Riven," he said, holding out one hand, his left one.  
  
Blushing deeper, she shifted her bag in her hands and took his hand, though she was surprised when he bowed over it instead of what she'd expected. "I'm Mira," she said softly as he straightened.  
  
"A pleasure," he said with another smile, his strangely colored eyes sparkling, he hadn't let go of her hand. "Um, were you...in a hurry?" he asked, sounding almost nervous.  
  
Mira shook her head, having the urge to push her hair back behind her ear as was her usual reaction when she was embarrassed, but one hand held her purse, the other rested in his large palm. She felt so small next to him, she could feel the power radiating off him, flowing into her through the contact with his hand and still, she wasn't frightened. Somehow, he seemed more frightened of her than anything. "Ah no. I was... going home.."  
  
Riven took a breath and tried to think, but he felt as if his wits were seeping out through a hole in the back of his head and he realized he still had her hand, but she hadn't made any move that she was disturbed by that contact. "Uh- do- do you like coffee?" he asked rather hurriedly.  
  
Her smile was like a flower, opening just for him and she gave a slight nod. "There's a coffee shop just down the street," she offered when he made no move. He blinked a few times, as if realizing for the first time that going to get coffee would require moving. Mira gave a slight laugh and moved out into the rain, pulling him along, back the way he'd been walking.  
  
The rain had let up somewhat, but they were still soaked once they got into the coffee shop and she smiled at him as she found herself dry once again. "I should have thought to bring an umbrella," she said, "But I guess I forgot to."  
  
"I don't have one," he replied as they sat down at a table in the dim interior of the shop. "It's not standard supply for Elite's." He was rewarded with a laugh.  
  
Their conversation was interrupted by a waitress coming to them, her eyes were riveted to Riven, "Oh my god! I've seen you before-" she started in with but Riven stood and placed a finger on her lips.  
  
"Two mocha latte," he said, "Extra whipped cream on one," he turned her around by her shoulders and gave her a gentle push toward the counter. Obediently, she left, her eyes wide and a blush on her face.  
  
"You get that all the time, don't you?" Mira asked, pushing her hair behind her ear.  
  
Riven retook his seat, "Only since that TV broadcast," he said, "Grey wasn't too happy about it anyway. I really don't care."  
  
She tipped her head to the side curiously, "Who's Grey?"  
  
Behind the counter there was the sound of hissing as the drinks were prepared. He smiled, "Grey's kinda my boss," he said with a shrug, "Though he doesn't give orders that often."  
  
"Must be nice," she said, her eyes on his face. Outside, the rain continued to pour and there weren't all that many people in the café, so they were relatively left to themselves.  
  
Riven pried the plug out of his ear and set it on the table. "Yeah, he just knows that we're all intelligent enough to do what's needed."  
  
Mira put her elbows on the table, one hand cupping her chin as she relaxed. "So how did you become an Elite?" she asked, "Was there something that made you want to?"  
  
Riven looked down at the table, drawing random invisible designs on it's surface, "Actually, I didn't really have a choice, but it gives me a reason to live, so I'm alright with it. I just... woke up one day and..."  
  
There seemed to be something hidden behind his expression, as if he didn't want to talk about it, so she changed the topic. "Do you have any family here?" she laughed slightly at herself, "Close family, that is."  
  
"No," he said, "The only one I'm even vaguely related to is Grey, though I don't think he really wants to consider me as a family member, so I don't bring it up."  
  
Mira's eyes softened, "I'm sorry," she said.  
  
"No, it's alright," Riven said and smiled at her once more. "Um.. do you live here?" he asked finally after an awkward silence fell between them.  
  
She smiled at him in return, "Yes," she answered, "Not all that far. Though I've always wanted to live somewhere with real trees."  
  
Riven pursed his lips, "I like trees too," he said, "The air is better around them."  
  
"I've lived in this city my whole life," she said somewhat regretfully, "I've never gotten to see an actual tree growing in anything other than a pot."  
  
Another smile came to his lips, "Maybe you could visit the palace sometime. There's trees in the garden. And lots of flowers," he blushed faintly as if embarrassed to be caught talking about flowers. Their drinks arrived and he dug in his pocket for his bank card, handing it to the waitress. Within a moment, it was returned to him and he stuck it back into the pocket of his jeans.  
  
"So what do you do all day?" Riven asked her after he'd taken a sip of his java.  
  
Mira gave a slight laugh, "You got..." she made a little gesture with her hand, wiping off her nose.  
  
"Oh," he said and used a napkin to remove the whipped cream from his nose.  
  
Smiling, she answered his question, "I'm an insurance agent for Terra Savings, though I don't ever go out and sell the stuff, I just file the claims. Regular paper pusher, but it's... kind of nice, I'm helping people."  
  
He nodded, taking another sip after licking the top of his whipped cream down to keep from getting it on his nose once more. "I just kinda.. stand around and look mean," he said, "and whenever anyone looks like they're thinking of doing something, I give a grin..." He demonstrated his grin but it changed almost immediately into sniggering.  
  
Mira also laughed, "I hope that last part doesn't sneak in there," she said.  
  
"Oh, sometimes it does and Grey glares at me about it but he knows what I'm capable of," Riven gave a slight shrug.  
  
Briefly, Mira thought of asking him what he could do, but something inside her told her she probably didn't want to know. So she left that alone in favor of stating, "What about animals?"  
  
He blinked at her, "What about them?"  
  
A smile flashed at him and that masked look he had worn while talking about his job disappeared. "Do you like them? Do you have any?" she asked.  
  
"Oh!" he said, "Ah, yes and no," he said, "I guess I like them. I just haven't gotten the chance to have any."  
  
"I have a cat," Mira stated, "Her name is Mauxi."  
  
Riven smiled, "Got a lot of nerve, doesn't she?" he asked, getting the slight pun in her cat's name. Mira laughed and nodded, sipping her drink and finishing it. Riven wasn't that far behind her in finishing his coffee and he picked up his earplug, sticking it into his pocket and getting up. "I'll walk you home," he said.  
  
Mira looked out the front windows of the coffee shop and smiled, "The rain stopped." They moved toward the door and he opened it for her, holding it until she was out and they moved down the street at a casual pace.  
  
****  
  
Riven walked along the sidewalk in a daze, still unsure of what exactly had happened. He'd walked with Mira to her apartment, said bye to her and now he was wandering back towards the palace. ~"Why did I act so stupid?"~ he asked himself, ~"She probably thinks I'm a complete idiot!"~  
  
He sighed and hung his head as it began raining once more.  
  
*****  
  
Mira sat at her desk in a daze, only yesterday had she actually met and talked to a true gentleman, and though he had secrets, she felt like it wasn't because he wanted to hurt her that he hadn't been quite completely forthcoming with the truth. He'd never lied during the conversation, he just held some things back, and somehow she had a feeling that he hadn't told her because he DIDN'T want to hurt her.  
  
Of course he had to be somewhat of a violent person if he was an Elite, but his talk about trees and animals...  
  
"MIRA!" Quint's voice broke into her thoughts and she felt herself being turned around in her swivel chair to face the brown-haired woman, "That's the fifth time I've called you and- what's that?" she narrowed her eyes with a slight smirk in them.  
  
"What's what?" Mira asked, her eyes widening.  
  
"I saw a SMIIILLEEEE!" she crowed, "Who is it? Who did you meet?!"  
  
Belatedly, Mira realized that she had in fact been smiling and blushed deeply in response to Quint's insistent questioning. "I- It- I-"  
  
Hershey spoke up then, "Quint! Give her a chance to actually speak!" she said as she came over with three cups of coffee from the refreshments area. "Who was he?"  
  
Mira blushed even deeper, "Him...it was the Elite guy-" she stammered, "I was heading home yesterday and it started raining so I went under the awning in front of the wedding shop and he just came out of nowhere and..."  
  
Quint whooped. "It's fate!" she stated, pointing firmly at Mira, "Fate! Fate! Fate! You're SUPPOSED to be with him!"  
  
"Quint!! I-"  
  
Hershey interrupted with a squeal, "Ouuu! How romantic! A random meeting in the rain with your knight in shining armor! What happened?! Something else had to have happened?! Did you find out his name?!"  
  
"His name is Riven and he took me to coffee and then walked me home."  
  
Quint spoke up once more, clasping her hands together against her light pink shirted breasts, "This is so fantastic!" she blubbered as if she were envisioning the wedding dress already.  
  
Mira was about to speak once more when Hershey glomped onto Quint's hands and they squealed together, "It's so romantic!!" Slowly, the redhead covered her face with her hands and slid down in her chair.  
  
**** 


	24. Loooookit! a battle scene!

Chapter 26  
  
BLARG!!!  
  
  
  
Title notwithstanding, here's the story...  
  
  
  
Amelia happened to be walking down the hall at just the right moment, just the right moment to pass Riven going the other way, soaking wet and walking with his head bowed and a slight frown on his lips. She paused, turned, and jogged to catch up with him.  
  
~"Riven?"~ she asked, ~"Are you alright?"~ she asked worriedly, her mothering instinct turning on full, ~"Did something happen?"~ Her eyes watered as she thought of how she'd gotten upset about his hanging around the palace all the time and told him to go out somewhere and make some friends. ~"You're not upset with me, are you? I'm sorry! I didn't mean to- "~  
  
Riven lifted his head and flashed a smile at her, touching her lips with one finger, ~"I'm alright, was just thinking and didn't realize it'd been raining."~  
  
~"But... What were you thinking about? Was it something we-"~  
  
Once more, the smile flashed, it was dazzling in its abrupt warmth, ~"Oh heck no, Amelia,"~ he said and suddenly hugged her, ~"Actually, thanks for telling me to go away. I had fun!"~ He let her go and turned, continuing into his room, smiling as he mumbled something like 'Yes, I had fun... wow... Rezo doesn't have any memories of THAT.'  
  
Amelia stood in shock as the door closed and she belatedly realized he'd gotten her wet with his hug but it wasn't like it mattered, she was going to bed anyway. ~"I hope he doesn't get a cold,"~ she mumbled. Turning slowly, with one last look at Riven's door, she headed down the hall toward the room she and Grey shared.  
  
Upon entering the room, she found Grey just sitting down on the bed to take off his shoes. ~"Riven's back,"~ she said as she came to sit beside him.  
  
~"Was he upset?"~ Grey asked absently as he tugged at his boot. Amelia slid to the floor to take over from him.  
  
~"Well,"~ Amelia replied and paused a moment as she pulled at the boot, finally it slid off and she set it aside to work on his other foot, ~"He was soaking wet, and when I asked him about it.. he said he had fun and thanked me for tossing him out."~  
  
Grey gave a snort, ~"Fun, hmm? Probably a nice change for once."~  
  
His lover looked up at him critically, ~"You could have fun too if you let yourself."~ Amelia stood and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, putting her weight on him and making him fall back into the bed.  
  
Their lips met for a moment, then he snorted, ~"When you're around, I don't need to have fun. You have enough for both of us."~ Amelia smiled, knowing very well that those words were just a different way of saying he loved her.  
  
****  
  
Another publicized event, this time it wasn't directly involving the Mage Elite's, instead, it was ambassadors of many races coming to have a major meeting on what to do about the space pirates that have reportedly been popping in and out of places and killing important people, randomly causing chaos, and massing just out of rage.  
  
"We should send battle ships!" stated one leader forcefully, standing up and slamming his fist on the table.  
  
Another leader stood up, answering that outcry with his own, "I've already sent my entire fleet and only three came back with stories of mass destruction!"  
  
The Polu were there too, they made their few statements, but mostly stayed silent, a young member of this alliance, they felt they didn't have the right to speak unless they had concrete information to give.  
  
And over all this, the Mage Elite's watched. Grey sat beside Amelia- his lover on one side of the princess. The princess was beside her father and glaring daggers at her ancestor. Riven was sitting on the king's other side idly folding paper into origami shapes, some of which didn't turn out so good and the majority had fallen off the table. He'd withstood the first thirty minutes, sitting straight and looking attentive, but after that, boredom set in and so spawned the origami. Zelan was out of sight but within range of being helpful. Wryan had talked his superiors into giving Kiza a uniform and so she was under his command, though she didn't particularly like it, but this did give her the chance to swipe wallets from unsuspecting dignitaries. The two firey spirited people were out of sight as well, but at the doors, looking official. Other Elite Guards had been brought in to watch the various other egresses, there was much chatter going on over the various wristcom channels, though each group had a leader and that leader's group was assigned a channel for themselves. That didn't stop someone from another group switching to listen to another channel or something, and many of the curious flipped to the Mage Elite's channel on occasion, only to hear silence.  
  
Then, breaking the three hours of silence that had existed on that channel... ~"Grey... I've gotta go to the bathroom..."~ Riven finally mumbled. Immediately Amelia's face turned red and she tried not to laugh, resorting to biting her hand in the effort. Anyone familiar with Grey could probably imagine his expression- which was the cause of more suppressed giggling from Amelia who really truly tried.  
  
~"Hold it,"~ Grey muttered in return, glaring at Amelia.  
  
~"I've BEEN holding it.. I've REALLY gotta go!"~  
  
"What's the fuss?" came Wryan's voice.  
  
"Riven's complaining..." Grey grumped in return.  
  
"But I've gotta go NOW...."  
  
Amelia put her head on the table.  
  
"It's not funny Amelia.." Riven whined faintly.  
  
Finally Grey stated, "WHY didn't you go BEFORE this stared?"  
  
Riven eye-twitched, "Because I didn't have to go then, baka!" he replied heatedly. Briefly there was a squawk of laughter that rang though the amphitheater before it was stifled. It's source was unknown.  
  
The king leaned over to Riven and murmured, "Something wrong?" he asked.  
  
"No, sir," he mumbled, bowing his head. Amelia still had her head on the table, her face completely red and every time it seemed she would stop giggling she would start again.  
  
****  
  
And in every home on the planet....  
  
A reporter's voice narrated the scene softly, "Seems the mages have sensed something." There was a hushed pause as they waited for something to happen. The camera focused in on Riven mumbling into his wristcom though Amelia and Grey could still be seen to the other side of the princess who looked vaguely bored.  
  
"What was THAT expression for?" asked the news anchor at the home station.  
  
"I don't know...." the live reporter said as the audience watched Amelia put her head on the table, shoulders shaking with laughter. More chatter flitted over the Mage's channel and the squawk of another laugh heralded Riven's deep blush at the king's mumble.  
  
****  
  
~"Wahh!! This is so boring!"~ Riven complained once more.  
  
"Would you shut up! You volunteered to sit at the table with us!" Grey snapped between gritted teeth, getting a little louder then a mumble and gaining the attention of the princess... he'd also forgotten to speak in the 'Old Language'.  
  
Amelia XXXIX's eyes lit up with interest and she loomed at him. "Something we should know about?" she asked.  
  
"No," he stated firmly, blocking her out of the conversation.  
  
Pouting, Riven muttered, "Didn't know this was going to take so long..." He put his elbow on the table and supported his chin on his palm, glowering at the group of dignitaries in a general bad mood.  
  
"If you slip out quick, Riv, they won't notice," Amelia finally spoke up, having gotten herself under control.  
  
Immediately, Riven brightened, "Oh thank you!" and he was out in a flash. Not more than a minute had passed before he was back and slid into his chair with a slight contented smile. For another hour, he sat quietly, his origami forgotten. Eventually, he went back to making more paper animals, which annoyed Grey to no end, for he remembered Rezo giving him origami sometimes on his birthdays or just randomly. When he started making paper people, though, Grey lost his temper. ~"Quit that!"~  
  
Riven sighed, "But I'm bored."  
  
"Then count bumps on the ceiling..." Grey growled, and this little exchange ended up being in the common language, causing a few more giggles out of various Elite's listening in.  
  
"That'd put me to sleep though."  
  
"I'm going to strangle you if you don't stop it... Better yet, I'll find another tree to pin you to."  
  
Riven's eyes widened, "I'll stop!" he squeaked, one hand clutching his chest and he shivered, face gone pale.  
  
"Grey... that wasn't nice," Amelia said, "Riv, I wouldn't let him do that to you." Riven still seemed terrified, but he relaxed somewhat at Amelia's reassurance.  
  
***  
  
And At HOME...  
  
"Wonder what THAT was about?" asked the anchor curiously.  
  
"I don't know, but the one next to the princess seems a little angry." Grey was shown clenching his fists on the table as he tried desperately to keep himself from massively destructive tendencies.  
  
Mira, Quint, and Aliel sat on Quint's couch in her apartment, watching the broadcast for glimpses of their 'Knight'. "Bah! What I wouldn't give to hear what they're saying!" Quint burst out with, throwing some popcorn at the TV. Mira couldn't help but snigger. "Next time you see him-"  
  
"No! Quint, I couldn't ask him that- I mean, I hardly know him!" Mira immediately interrupted with while Aliel had remained silent, sitting between Quint and Mira to keep the two from getting physical, which ever way that ended up being.  
  
Quint threw some popcorn at her redheaded friend. "You're no fun!"  
  
****  
  
"So all we can really agree on is that there's nothing we can do right now," one of the dignitaries reiterated for the gathering rather blandly. "Except possibly send the..."  
  
Grey stood slowly, cutting into the dignitary's words like a sword and silence rang through the room. "No," he stated, "There are only four of us and who knows how many of them. Though collectively we have a lot of power, there is no way we can defeat what the universe is up against by ourselves."  
  
"And you know what we're really facing?" demanded another angered ambassador.  
  
Grey nodded somberly, "Mazoku," he stated heavily and his expression kept the people from giggling. "We've already had minor encounters with them on this world. More than likely they've massed on the borders of your space to serve as a simple distraction as single ones go out to eliminate key people, causing chaos."  
  
A stately woman spoke finally, her tones reaching over the gathering like ice with as much power as Grey's simple standing had. "And do you know what these Mazoku are planning?"  
  
Slowly, Grey shook his head, "As a certain Mazoku I happen to know personally would say... Sore wa himitsu desu..." He sat, smirking slightly as he imagined Xelloss fuming somewhere and ranting 'That's MY line!'.  
  
"A secret it is!" a nasal voice stated and a figure wearing the clothes Zelgadis had seen the Mazoku wearing long ago, landed on the table in front of the king and stood there for a minute, smiling.  
  
Silence rang through the room as everyone waited for the Mages to react, but Grey simply glowered. "Why are you here?"  
  
"Because!" Xelloss stated, lifting a finger, "Sore wa himitsu desu!"  
  
"Shouldn't have said it.. I knew I shouldn't have..." Grey muttered to himself as he wearily stood, however, he was beaten to the punch by a white blast from Riven's direction which blew Xelloss's hair upwards for a moment.  
  
"That was uncalled for," Xelloss stated, opening his eyes to look at Riven who flashed that randomly bright grin.  
  
"Just thought I'd give a warning shot," he replied- and suddenly wasn't there, neither were the King and princess. Riven stood in the unreality that he had created with his teleport spell, but it wasn't reacting quite the way he expected. "I've never done this with passengers before," he said apologetically and adjusted his power output, snapping them back into reality near Wryan and Kiza. "Mazoku's attacking," he stated, then popped back into the main room where Grey was exchanging random spells with Xelloss, though the battle wasn't going well. Grey had brought out his old sword and was attacking the Mazoku with the enhanced blade.  
  
He closed his eyes, calling upon the power that rested in his soul, something that he hadn't had to do in a while. After a moment, he felt something else answer him- two actually, one was... Yes, Zanafaar, the other, he couldn't identify, it didn't matter what they were though, he grabbed hold of them and slapped them together with his own power. Behind his eyelids, he could see the amorphous blob that was Xelloss's astral energy, and Grey... The spell would probably hurt Grey.  
  
"Zelgadis, you might want to get Zelan and run for it," he stated into his wristcom.  
  
"What the hell are you going to do- nothing that involves lots of death I hope."  
  
"Damn it, when will you get it through your head I'm not your enemy anymore?! Just get out of here, it won't hurt humans."  
  
"What about you?" Amelia broke in, she was shielding the exiting dignitaries and unable to really help Grey much.  
  
Riven smiled faintly but didn't answer her question, instead, he removed his earplug, stuffing it into his pocket before tugging on the gathered power.  
  
****  
  
And at HOME...  
  
Quint and Aliel clutched each other while Mira stared at the TV screen in awe. "Wow..." was the general consensus of the three women.  
  
"Looks like he's powering up for something big-" the live reporter stated from where he hid with his camera, watching the battle. On the screen, Riven stood by himself as Grey and Xelloss continued to fight, though now Amelia had joined the battle, thinking that everyone had gotten out.  
  
A blast from the Mazoku had Grey flying backwards and slamming into a wall, leaving a whole from which he slowly climbed out of and rejoined the fight. By now, a light wind had begun to swirl up around Riven, his origami defining the currents, as the wind picked up, blinding white light flickered around him, then steadied to a pulsing glow which widened into a defined sphere into which more papers were sucked. His lips were moving slowly and sweat ran down his face as his hair whipped around him wildly. Slowly, he lifted his hands pointing at Xelloss. In the sphere, the forms of writhing serpents could be seen, gliding along the wind created by the spell. A trickle of blood slid down from his nose.  
  
A lance of white light shot from his hands. Xelloss turned to face it, his eyes opening in shock briefly before he was hit by the spell and frozen there from pain as the spell lingered on. Finally, the light reduced to a wisp and flicked out all together, Xelloss disappeared, and Riven sank to his knees, then fell on his side.  
  
****  
  
Grey leapt down from where he'd landed after his last attempt to slice at Xelloss, and where he'd stayed during the Mazoku's blasting and limped over to Riven, rolling him onto his back and carefully placing his head on the Kopii's chest.  
  
"Damn kid," he mumbled finally, sitting up, "Won't ever learn to use things in moderation..."  
  
"I...hurt him.. though.." he whispered softly, his eyes half open.  
  
Grey gave a very small smile, his expression softening slightly, "Yeah," he said, "Just rest now, though." Riven nodded slightly, his eyes closing once more as he did as told. Grey carefully hoisted him up and onto his back, then moved toward Amelia who stood waiting near the door.  
  
****  
  
"DAMN IT!!" Quint shouted loudly, throwing the remains of the popcorn and bowl at the TV. "Worse than a soap opera!!"  
  
Mira sat silently, clutching one of the dark brown couch cushions, her eyes watering. "He's dead... But I hardly got to know him!" she suddenly wailed, throwing herself on the still silent Aliel who did her best to comfort the redhead.  
  
***** 


	25. Chapter 27- in case you lost count

Chapter 27  
  
We think he's alright...  
  
Riven slowly opened his eyes, taking a deep breath and moving his arms slightly. He could feel blankets over him, though a slight breeze was on his chest. Looking down, he found he was wearing only a pair of boxers, which was fine with him, he was in bed after all. His gaze returned to the ceiling.  
  
How much time had passed, he didn't know, and couldn't tell. He was in his room in the palace, the window was closed and curtains pulled shut. Riven decided to get up. It took him a while to just find the energy to even sit up, but once he was there, he propped his arm back and locked his elbow.  
  
The door opened and Katachi walked in, blinking in surprise. "I- hadn't expected that you'd be waking up this soon. Are you feeling alright?"  
  
Riven nodded and yawned widely, "Just out of energy," he said softly.  
  
"God, you scared us, we thought you'd killed yourself, Grey kept saying you were fine, but our instruments couldn't tell what was wrong with you!" Katachi came into the room, closing the door behind him, pulled a chair over to the side of Riven's bed, and sat. "What DID happen?"  
  
Wearily, Riven shook his head, "Over exerted myself... used too much power in one place. I should learn to quit doing that."  
  
Katachi stared, "You've done it before?"  
  
"How do you think I got these," Riven held his hand out toward Katachi, the backs of them were spotted with what looked like small puncture wounds healed over, they extended in a line all the way around his hand and onto his wrists. "These are from a ... I guess a machine would be the only term to use that you would understand... It enhanced power, and restored power if too much was used, it injected it in."  
  
Once more Riven shook his head and let his hand drop back onto the blankets. "I'm taking the week off, that should give me enough time to regain at least a quarter of what I used. It'll be enough for small things, nothing like what I did... when was it?"  
  
"Yesterday, it's afternoon now," Katachi supplied, watching as Riven slid out of his bed and went to his dresser, getting out a pair of jeans and a loose green shirt. He had to pause for a moment and take a breather before he started dressing himself though. Katachi stood to help, but Riven waved him away. After putting his sneakers on, Riven moved for the door, Katachi following.  
  
"Thanks for being worried..." Riven said out of the blue as the scientist walked with him down the hallway, "No one's ever given a damn about me before."  
  
Katachi pursed his lips slightly, "Why wouldn't they? You seem like a nice enough guy." He walked with the mage slowly, Riven with his shoulders slumped and head bowed as if it took too much energy to life them.  
  
A slight smile touched his lips and he lifted his head a fraction, "If you knew as much about me as Grey knew... you probably wouldn't say that. He's only glad I'm on his side now."  
  
The scientist was silent as he gazed at Riven. They reached the front hall without mishap, and it seemed that the taller man was getting better with every moment. "Where are you going?" Katachi asked, belatedly realizing that Riven was heading toward the door. "Maybe you should take a car-"  
  
"No.. I'd rather walk. I'll be alright." With that, he left Katachi standing in awe.  
  
*****  
  
Mira sat in misery, staring at the table in the café she and Riven had shared only once. "I didn't even get to know him..." she thought to herself, feeling like she was going to cry once more. Even though she was sure there had been people that had known him better, she felt she had the right to mourn, for he had given her the impression that there actually weren't any people who would mourn him should he die. She traced slow patterns on the table, as if mimicking him could somehow bring him back.  
  
Dimly, she heard the door open, the chimes set above it ringing gently. She didn't bother looking up when she felt someone move past her, but when the seat across the table was filled, she glanced up, her eyes widening at the slightly paled face that smiled back at her.  
  
"Hey, something wrong? You look like your cat just died- she didn't did she?" he asked worriedly, leaning closer to put a hand over hers.  
  
Mira gripped his fingers, "No," she whispered, "I- I thought YOU were dead! We.. I – on the TV... You cast that spell and..." She saw him blushing.  
  
"Oh great... you mean it was on TV?" he asked mournfully and put his hand to his face. "I can't believe that bit of stupidity was..." he sighed. "No.. I'm not dead, I wasn't even close to dying. I just used too much power and my body didn't agree with it. I only passed out."  
  
She had to laugh, it was just her nerves finally untying from the knot she'd wound herself into. Her laugh exploded out and rang through the café, even if it was early in the day and hardly anyone was there, the sound seemed out of place and disturbing. Riven reached across the table and put his hands on her shoulders, shaking her slightly. "I- I'm sorry- I," Mira stammered, tears flowing once again, "I- don't know why I did that."  
  
Riven gave her that dazzling smile once more, a flash of his former self and she immediately felt better. "It's alright," he said, "I think I can imagine what you were thinking all this time and I was only passed out." He snorted with a hint of amusement, but it died not long after being birthed, he simply didn't have the energy to keep it alive verbally but the spark still remained in his eyes.  
  
"You look tired," Mira said, "Did you... did you walk all the way here?" she asked him and he nodded slightly. "Oh dear," she said, reaching over to push his errant bangs back from his face. Though the gesture startled her, Riven didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he gave no indication other than that he didn't mind that she'd done it. "Come on, we'll go to my apartment and you can see my cat. You don't have to work-"  
  
"No, I'm taking the week off." He slowly got up, towering over her, but it was comforting in a weird way. Mira felt so confused, she couldn't possibly be in love with him, she didn't even know him... she'd only met him three times, counting this, and seen him five- counting all other three times plus those two times on TV. They moved toward the door and out onto the sidewalk, she thought of getting a cab, briefly, all thoughts shattered when she felt his hand brush against hers, then her hand slid into his smooth palm.  
  
Silence descended upon them though Mira didn't feel inclined to break it. Their pace was slow and it took an hour for them to reach their destination, he looked so tired by the time she got her door open and led him in.  
  
"I'm sorry- it's a mess,"  
  
"I don't mind," he murmured, looking at her apartment as an extension of her personality.  
  
Mira turned to face him, her violet eyes gazing up at him as her hand moved to push her hair behind her ear. "I've just not felt like cleaning up lately," she said and his mismatched eyes turned to gaze at her face, the messy room forgotten. Blushing, she tore her gaze away to gesture towards the couch hidden under a blanket and the cat. "Make yourself at home. Would you like some tea?  
  
"Yes, thank you," he said and moved to sit on the couch. It didn't take long for the fat ball of grey and brown fur named Mauxi to make her way onto his lap and curl up, at least she was there by the time Mira returned with the tea and found that her guest had fallen asleep, one hand resting on his lap warmer. For a moment, she simply stood there, gazing at him, then she put her trey down on the coffee table and pulled the blanket off the other side of the couch, straightened it out and tucked it around his shoulders. Mauxi didn't mind being covered, she tended to climb under the blankets anyway. Mira went about cleaning up her apartment as quietly as she could, wondering at how tired he must be to have fallen asleep so quickly.  
  
****  
  
His eyes snapped open when he felt something move on him. The room was dark, unfamiliar, and there was someone laying on him- as well as a furball under his nose. Riven took care of the furball before he sneezed and finally, memory returned to him. He was at Mira's apartment and had probably fallen asleep, he was still fully clothed at least, she was just sleeping on the last bit of couch that he wasn't taking up, halfway curled up on him.  
  
Once he had identified everything strange, he wondered at what everyone at the palace would be thinking about now, it felt like midnight, the digital clock on top of the TV said one thirty. No use in making a fuss over the situation... besides, it felt nice to have someone trust him enough to sleep on him....and he was getting sleepy again.  
  
First, though, he had to answer Nature. When he got up, the lights turned on, stupid motion sensors. He found the switch and turned them off once more then found his way to the bathroom by his 'other' senses.  
  
When he came back, he found that Mira had taken over the couch. Riven stood there, pondering what to do, he would lay on the floor, but there was only one blanket, he didn't feel like picking her up and putting her to bed. He made a decision, and just scooted her over on the couch, laid down beside her and covered them both with the blanket. It wasn't like they were having sex or anything.  
  
With a sigh, Mira adjusted to him, sliding one arm over his chest and a leg over his knees. Riven immediately regretted even briefly thinking about sex or his decision to share the couch with her. Mentally berating himself he cast a very small calming spell. He could feel the drain on his already low energy, but it was an emergency. The cat rejoined them curling up on his waist, draping across Mira as well, and purred. Sleep overcame him once more like a sandbag from the sky.  
  
****  
  
Mira woke. It wasn't that big of an occasion, but it wasn't quite the slow waking she usually enjoyed in the mornings. Why this time was so different was because she had discovered she was curled up against another very warm body and she had begun to sweat.... and he was drooling. She sat up untangling herself from the blanket, his arm falling off her shoulders, and looked down at him, finding that the drool really made him seem younger, and far more handsome than he already was. His shirt had ridden up as well, exposing his smooth skinned stomach, as well as a light line of hair leading down from his bellybutton and into his pants.  
  
Her eyes moved from his stomach to his neck and the line of his jaw. Riven's eyes twitched slightly, his lashes fluttering faintly. Lifting a hand, Mira brushed her fingers along his stomach- then blushed. "I shouldn't do that," she told herself softly, removing her hand and carefully climbing over him and off the couch, headed towards her bedroom.  
  
Mauxi was sleeping on her bed, taking up as much space as was possible for the fattened fluff, and that was a lot of space. Briefly, Mira scritched the feline, then went into the bathroom with some new clothes.  
  
*****  
  
Banging... Riven could hear banging and he didn't like it, it was on level with the banging Eris used to do when she was pissed. He woke and looked around, lifting a hand to wipe at the drool on his cheek. The front door burst open.  
  
"MIRA! You-oh...." The intruder was a tall handsome woman with slightly broad angles but it wasn't because she was overweight, just well muscled. She wore a short skirt of pale orange- verging on pink, a white silk-like blouse, and high heels, which added to her immense height. Her face was .. handsome, like that of a man's, a somewhat squared chin, though her nose wasn't large and bumpy like any man's would be. Her hair- chocolate brown and cut very short, gelled into spikes on the back and short bangs flowing free. Her green eyes rested on Riven as she sauntered forward, tossing the door shut behind her.  
  
"You sure threw us for a loop, boy," she said with a grin, standing above him with her hands on her wide hips and a smirk on her full lips. "Mira cried for hours thinking you were dead!"  
  
"Quint! Don't harass him!" Mira's voice interrupted as she came out of the bedroom with her hair in a towel. Riven blinked, yawned and pulled the blanket over his head.  
  
The tall woman gave a laugh, "And might I ask what he's doing here? Did you two have a good time?"  
  
Mira's face turned bright red, "We didn't do anything!!!"  
  
Once more, Riven made an appearance, "Yeah.. I fell asleep."  
  
"Then I cleaned up the apartment some and went to bed," Mira rejoined, though she was still blushing terribly.  
  
"But he was here all night and you didn't DO anything?" Quint demanded.  
  
Riven finally pulled the blanket off and stood up, "Some people believe in morals," he stated blandly, though Quint took a step back from him, effectively cowed despite his lack of threatening manor.  
  
"Um..the.. bathroom is free-" Mira put in, hoping to defuse the situation by removing one of the elements. Riven gave a slight nod and moved past her, though his hand brushed her arm as he did, sending shivers down her spine and a fresh blush to her face. The door shut.  
  
Quint watched Mira carefully, "Woah... he's.. Almost makes me want to become Bi! But only if he's got a brother."  
  
"I don't think he does. He mentioned not having any family," Mira supplied and headed into the kitchen area, the linoleum cold on her bare feet. "Are you staying for breakfast?"  
  
Of course Quint nodded. Coming into the kitchen, she leaned against one of the counters out of Mira's way as she worked her magic on regular everyday food. Silence ran rampant though the apartment except for the sound of cooking and the shower. Eventually the shower turned off and Riven stepped out of the bedroom- wearing different clothes than what he'd gone in with. Quint eyed him, "Where'd you get those? Or have you already moved in here-"  
  
Riven finished braiding his wet hair and tied it before tossing it over his shoulder. "No," he stated, then paused, as if trying to think of a way to explain something, "I've just got most of my things in a subspace pocket linked to various places, like the dresser in my room at the palace, my pockets... That way if I'm ever anywhere out of the way and I need a change of clothes-" he reached into his pocket and pulled out another pair of pants.  
  
Quint openly gaped now, "What ELSE have you got in there?!" she demanded and went over to him, sticking her hand into his pocket and only finding lint. "What? How-?" she asked as she pulled her hand out. Riven seemed to be in a better mood now, for he sniggered somewhat at her.  
  
"Magic," he stated and patted her head with one hand as his other stuffed the extra pair of jeans back into his pocket.  
  
Quint's eyes flashed briefly, but then changed to a cunning look, "You know, if there was a way to package that or something you could make lots of money."  
  
"Or just sell women's purses," Mira offered.  
  
Riven shrugged, coming into the kitchen to sit on the counter near the stove and eye the bacon with a vulture like look. "I get free food and board at the palace, plus I'm getting paid by the king, so what do I really need more money for? I'm sure after the Mazoku threat is over- or at least put down enough for us to feel safe again- they'll find something else for me to do, even if it is random crime fighting or something..." he didn't seem to like that idea much.  
  
Mira popped the back of his hand with her fingers when he reached for the bacon and he pouted at her. "Oh...only one," she said and he smiled once more, taking his one piece gladly.  
  
Quint leaned against the counter on the other side of the kitchen from him, "So what else can you do with magic, besides that big blaster thing and the bottomless pocket?"  
  
Riven gave a slight smirk at her, "Lots, but I can't really demonstrate right now because I'm only just recovering from that 'big blaster'." He shook his head.  
  
"So is that guy dead?" Quint asked instead.  
  
A sigh escaped his lips, "I wish. The thing with Mazoku is that their physical form is only a very tiny portion of what they really are."  
  
"Oh, like an iceberg?" Mira asked, glancing up from her cooking, though that was a mistake, for she misplaced her hand, burning her fingers on the edge of the pan. "Ouch!" she snatched her hand back and looked mournfully at her fingers.  
  
Immediately, Riven looked at her, catching her hand, "Here... I've got enough energy for something small like this," he said and smiled. Quint immediately pressed close to look at the darkening red mark on her friend's hand. For a moment, Riven did nothing but stare at it, then he brushed his fingers over the spot. Gone, as if the burn had never happened, even the pain was gone. Mira looked up at him with wonder. "That's amazing," she murmured.  
  
Quint looked up from Mira's hand as well- a hand that was still being held by Riven's. She felt slightly uncomfortable, as if she was invading the house of two newlyweds. They were looking into each other's eyes.  
  
"Ah... the bacon's burning," Quint reminded finally and Riven hastily let go of Mira's hand so she could get back to cooking.  
  
*****  
  
Wryan sat in a chair across the room from Kiza, his chair leaning back against the wall, feet propped up on the desk that was in front of him. They were off duty at the moment, so he had taken the chance to relax, though it was hard to with someone so energetic as Kiza around.  
  
"So..." he said, breaking the silence that had lasted for thirty minutes after the last question was asked and answered. "What's your story?" he asked, gazing toward where she sat on the floor trying to do some magic, though it wasn't working well.  
  
Kiza looked up and frowned, "Why do you want to know?" she asked defensively.  
  
With a sigh, Wryan leaned forward, removing his feet from the desk and putting all four of the chair legs on the floor. Thumping his elbows on the desk, he clasped his hands together and spoke, "Because, for one, I'm your commander and I'd like to know what sort of person I'm dealing with. The others may know who you were, but who you are now has an impact on your actions more than what you once were. Second, I'm curious."  
  
Idly, she pursed her lips. "I suppose I could tell you... it IS said that everyone in the Elite has some sort of major problems that only the military could sort out, after all." Wryan bristled slightly at her smirk and pointed look. "I was born in the city, raised in the city, and until recently, I've never been anywhere other than in my parent's shop. They thought they could get by with selling silly tourniquets in a big city like that, so... I learned how to get some sparklies of my own." She grinned wolfishly. "It wasn't until I ran into the princess that I ever thought I could be anything more than a petty thief."  
  
Slowly, Wryan nodded, "I see." He slid down and put his head on his arms.  
  
"What's YOUR story?" she returned the question at him as if it were a gaviball back onto his side of the court.  
  
He stuck out his tongue at her but stated, "I guess you've got a right to know," he said, gazing up at the animal heads mounted on the walls. "I'm practically opposite from you," he said, "I came from a rich family, the money being passed down from generation to another by thrifty Inverses since the days of Lina. My parents thought I could be something more, so I got shoved into the Elite's- and it wasn't money that bought this star. I worked for it," he sat up and pointed at the symbol on his chest proudly.  
  
"I never doubted it," Kiza stated, though Wryan saw that glower on her face before she shoved it aside. "What about those mages?" she asked, "You going to become one of them?"  
  
Wryan put his chin in his hands, "I've been bugging Riven to teach me something but he keeps saying no or that he's busy. I'm wearing him down though." He smirked slightly.  
  
Kiza looked back up at him from her hands, "Aren't I technically a mage too?" she asked, "I can do spells, just.. only when I'm pissed."  
  
Her commander snirked at her, "When your spells are more reliable," he told her, "Then you can ask Grey."  
  
The door opened and a tall man with broad shoulders and a lithe body stepped in, paused, blinked his large brown eyes at the two, "I'm sorry-" he said, "I didn't know anyone was in here." He started to leave.  
  
Kiza jumped up, grabbing the back of his coat, "Wait! I... I feel like I know you," she said, "what's your name?"  
  
He turned his head and smiled at her, "I'm Sean Gavrian! Who are you, little girl?" Immediately, her temper flared and Sean was introduced to the floor. "Gee.. you're strong," he mumbled into the carpet, pain lancing through his arm.  
  
"Don't call me 'little'," she stated firmly and got off his back while Wryan snorted in amusement.  
  
"I think... you certainly belong in the Elite's, Kiza," the redheaded commander stated and got to his feet. "I'll just leave you and your janitor boyfriend alone."  
  
Kiza's anger flared again but Wryan was already out of range, so she hit Sean once more. "Itai..." Sean mumbled.  
  
****  
  
"Damn it... No one's seen him since yesterday!" Grey growled, slamming his fist into a wall and leaving a dent. "He better not have gotten into trouble!" Amelia sat on the bed, watching Grey pace in their room.  
  
She had given up trying to get him to calm down and just taken a seat and there she was, waiting for him to get a hold on himself. She had given up trying to tell Grey that Riven was alright, for his answer was that he wasn't worried about Riven himself, but losing someone to fight the Mazoku. Amelia hugged a pillow to her chest, feeling insignificant. She could feel her powers getting weaker as the day's progressed and she knew she wouldn't be worth much for another few days. That would be two mages out of action for a week or so.  
  
Finally, Grey turned, leaving the room. Leaving Amelia to herself, and she curled up on her side on the bed, hugging the pillow to her chest still. Idly, she wished he would calm down. He'd never gotten so worked up over things before, even when they were out saving the world with Lina.. but then, he had never been the one leading everything, it had always been careless Lina.  
  
Amelia rolled onto her back and stretched her legs out, still holding the pillow. At least he didn't have Wryan bugging him about magic like Riven did. "I hope he's alright..." she said softly, staring up at the ceiling.  
  
***** 


	26. Hey! It's 11 pages this time!

MORE sappy romance, but there's a reason, a direction, a point (the top of my head *points* ~_^ Teehee)!! Anyway, just bear with me a bit longer and we'll get into more plotly type things and another battle scene, I've just gotta get in a few things that happen before the major scene I've written already.  
  
Oh, btw, were you expecting HIM to be Gourry??? ^_~  
  
The story is actually nearing completion too!!! O.o;; wow...  
  
  
  
Chapter 28  
  
The Awakening  
  
They'd gotten rid of Quint, finally. The woman had had to go to work while her friend played hookie with the handsome Elite, and Quint made it quite clear that she wanted a full report on what they did all day before she finally left. And when she'd left... she'd turned around and squealed something about 'SO CUTE!' at the top of her lungs and hurried off as if she were going to post something about it in the newspaper.  
  
Riven looked from Quint's back to Mira's blush and gave a slight shrug. "So what do you want to do now?" he asked, feeling her fingers move in his hand and he wondered how it was that he'd ended up holding it. It really didn't matter, he liked it.  
  
"Depends on how well you're feeling," Mira replied, looking up at him with a slight smile on her pale lips. He became mesmerized by how her skin seemed to glow as if she gave off some sort of holy light.  
  
An image flashed through his mind... The tree with the sun caught in its branches.  
  
"Are you alright?" she asked, bringing him back to the present.  
  
Riven smiled, that suddenly bright and slightly cocky smile of his, "Yeah, just remembered something. Is there anything you have to do today, like groceries or something?"  
  
Mira gave a light laugh which brightened his mood immensely just as her breakfast had not only tasted wonderful but given him plenty of energy to last the day. "You're such a gentleman, how is it that you don't have anyone?"  
  
He seemed to think on that, but his words seemed rather like they'd been just blurted out from nowhere, "Well I hope to have someone soon," he said, looking at her. A blush crept up her face, but his attention had already wandered. He looked around the sidewalk they were standing on, watching as people recognized him or didn't, watched as cars went past. "I wish," he murmured softly, "That I could show you what it was like before."  
  
He sounded so melancholy that she couldn't help but throw her arms around him. "Oh.. Riven, don't worry about it," she said, putting her face against his chest. For a moment, he was too startled to do anything but stare at her shimmering red hair, then he put his arms around her.  
  
A smile crept to his lips, "You're right, past is past, it doesn't matter. Let's go out to lunch."  
  
Mira laughed, her shoulders shaking in his grip and she held him a bit tighter before she let go enough to look up at his face. "But you just had breakfast!"  
  
"Which was delicious but that doesn't stop me from being hungry again," he stated seriously though his eyes glittered with laughter. "Well, maybe we can have lunch later, but what do we do now? We can't just stand around here and look silly till noon... unless you want to. I don't mind as long as I've got someone to look silly with." His words implied that he would only truly enjoy it if that person were her.  
  
Her fingers played with his braided hair somewhat, "Alright, we'll go get groceries," she reluctantly slid from his embrace and felt her hand being taken once more as they walked along the sidewalk at a slow pace, as if they were the only ones for miles around and there was nothing but trees and flowers.  
  
****  
  
They'd gone shopping, returned to Mira's apartment, put the groceries away, then it was around noon, so they walked to the café once more. Though he seemed a bit tired, she could tell he was a lot better from the day before, smiling more often and even doing random silly things, like twirling around with her or just non-stop talking about some silly things that had happened at the palace. She did note, though, that he didn't talk about his past and she let him keep it to himself. When he felt like telling her, he would, she figured and left it at that.  
  
They sat in the café, at their usual table having what would probably become their usual drink of mocha latte- extra whipped cream on his. As if he needed the sugar. Somehow, they had ended up sitting much nearer than they had before, not exactly across the table from each other anyway. Mira lifted her cup and took a sip, setting it down almost at the same moment he picked his up and licked at the whipped cream. Riven sniggered softly at her.  
  
"You've got some on your nose," he said, reaching over to wipe it away with his slender finger, then licked it off.  
  
Faintly, she blushed, "Taste good?" she asked, marveling at how his simple presence made her feel so much more important, made her feel like she had a right to be in the world and that she was allowed to flirt, at least with him.  
  
Riven gazed at her, "Yep," he said and flashed that grin of his. He leaned closer to her, "You've still got some there, too," he said and when she started to lift a napkin to rub it away, he placed his hand over top of hers. Mira felt like her heart was going to burst it was beating so fast as he moved in to no more than a breath away. This close, she could see the tiny flecks of violet-blue in his right eye and the exact definition of the cat-like pupil in his left, then, he closed those windows to his soul and in a fraction of a second, the world exploded into a million tiny pieces from the power of their meeting.  
  
His hand tightened over hers in the few seconds the kiss lasted and he drew back slightly, his eyes still closed. Mira could still feel her heart pounding in her chest, but now that the moment was over, reality crept in to reassert itself. She opened her eyes to find him gazing at her face, his other hand came up to touch her chin gently. "Thank you," he murmured, placing another kiss upon her forehead. After that, he seemed to withdraw into himself, though their hands remained linked on the table.  
  
Mira felt that she'd done something wrong, but he had a way of banishing self-doubt by just smiling at her, and he did that every now and then. "I'm sorry, I'm not much company, am I?" he asked after a long bout of silence.  
  
"It's alright," she said, "Talking isn't everything in a relationship-" she blushed.  
  
Riven nodded slightly, then glanced at her again with a slight upward twist to his lips, "So that means you like me enough to want to see more of me?"  
  
Her blush grew deeper, "Yes.. you couldn't tell?"  
  
His laugh startled her slightly, "I was too busy acting like a love-sick puppy over you," he told her with that smile.  
  
He seemed different, like something had awoken within him, something powerful. Riven didn't seem pale or tired anymore either, he was practically radiating energy now and he quickly finished off his java, peeked at her empty cup, then swept her up into his arms and toted her out, having paid when they got their drinks, he was free to just walk out. Mira yelped as she was lifted out of her seat bridal style and carried out the door. "What're you doing?"  
  
"I just feel like taking you somewhere," he stated and a brief wind whirled around them on the sidewalk. A shriek escaped her lips when they suddenly shot into the air, shooting past blank windows that stared like soulless creatures jealous of their freedom, they rose above the city and continued rising, far above the air-ways that the hovercraft used. They continued up until the mountains of the northwest were visible and the bay to the east could be seen, the sunlight sparking off the water.  
  
Mira clung to his shoulders as she gazed over the panorama below her. "Wow..." she murmured softly, "I've never been this high before... It's beautiful!"  
  
"Not what I remember, but I guess it has its own beauty," he replied with, looking towards the blackened spot that was once Siraag. His gaze moved toward the mountains that were still green with what looked like trees, so he headed that direction.  
  
"What- We can't go there! That's the king's personal...." she looked at Riven's slightly amused smirk. "I suppose he wouldn't care about what he didn't know of..." she said, "Besides, you're one of his guards."  
  
"Long as we don't leave a mess," he replied and sped up. He briefly closed his eyes when he felt a hard pull on his soul as they passed over Siraag, but now, he knew what it was. "Flagoon," he murmured, urging the tree to soothe itself. They just didn't have everything they needed to resurrect the tree yet. Now he could tell what the dreams had meant, now they were clear. Now the message he'd been given could help them, he just had to convince the others it was a good idea. Flagoon had awakened within him at the moment Riven had realized what love was- the same moment he had kissed Mira for the first time. How could he tell her his feelings without seeming like a complete idiot? To him, his actions over the last few meetings with her were clear, everything had led him to her. Mira was what he'd always wanted, needed... Someone to keep him straight without infringing on his own developing personality, a beautiful woman with a beautiful heart.  
  
Start at the beginning, Riven decided finally, looking down at her face as they passed over the land at a high speed. He would tell her everything, and if she still wanted to be with him, he would tell her his heart.  
  
They landed among the trees on the mountain in a quiet place that had a few flowers beginning to bloom. Riven's simple presence with the awakened essence of Flagoon within him caused the wilted seeming trees and plants to revitalize. "Mira..." He said as he set her feet on the ground. Immediately, she sat down and removed her shoes, putting her feet into the grass with a happy sigh.  
  
"This is so wonderful," she murmured, running her fingers along the stems of the flowers, "So beautiful... to think, the whole world used to be like this," she said and looked up at him with teary eyes. "Thank you," she said, sniffling, "This is... far more than I've ever wanted, a fantastic day."  
  
His heart still clenched with worry, he gave her a slight smile and sat beside her in the grass. "Mira," he tried again, "I-" He looked down, he couldn't....  
  
She turned, taking his hands in hers. "It's alright, Riven, you don't have to tell me," she said softly, feeling that somehow what he wanted to say was far too important for her to brush away lightly, but he probably needed more time to work up the nerve.  
  
"No, I need to tell you this before you get...any more involved with me," Riven's eyes remained downcast. "The beginning," he said, as if reminding himself, "At least ten thousand years ago there was...a priest... Rezo, the Red Priest," his voice broke and she tightened her hands on his. "At first.. he was a good man," he continued after swallowing, "but eventually, he went mad.. because he was blind and nothing he could do could cure it. He tried many things...including copying himself to test cures... I... I'm one of those copies. The others ended up dying during the violent tests he did on them. It was one of those tests that made my eyes like this." Briefly, he looked up, then dropped his gaze. "He had an assistant who's name was..." once more, he choked, "Eris."  
  
Mira slowly rubbed her thumbs over his knuckles, giving him silent support as he told her this, part of her heart screaming at the injustice of what had happened to him, another part completely disbelieving the story. After a few moments of silence, he continued, "Eris was a little batty too, she was obsessed with Rezo, as he was obsessed with curing himself. Eventually, he got into a little fight with Lina Inverse, summoned the Demon Lord Shabranigdu into himself, and she killed him.  
  
"Eris wasn't happy with it, so she used what was available to get revenge on Lina for this... Me, once more. She used a spell set on a gem to control my mind and made me attack Lina... including Zelgadis- who is now Grey. Grey may be a copy of his original body, but.. it's the same soul, he IS Zelgadis Graywords, just as Amelia, the female Elite, is Amelia Wil Tessa De Seyruun." Mira's lips pulled downward, things were getting weird, she didn't understand how such things could happen, but she remained silent as he continued. "In the end, I killed Eris, breaking her spell and summoned a Demon Beast named Zanafaar into myself and set about destroying Siraag. Two of those craters in the Dead City are my doing... I was the first to attempt to destroy Flagoon, but I was stopped by Lina."  
  
Slowly, he removed his hands from hers and pulled his shirt off. With shaking fingers, he touched the scar running six inches long across his heart. "To kill me.. they used a sword called the Blessed Blade and pinned me to Flagoon after a Shrine Maiden revived it. I was buried under that tree... and that's where Dr. Katachi found me. No, I'm not a copy of a copy, Flagoon preserved my body, instilling its spirit into me so that it could one day be revived."  
  
He lifted his eyes, gazing at her face, "Mira... I'm a monster. A bloody powerful monster that really doesn't deserve this second chance, or anyone to-" Mira placed her hand on his mouth.  
  
"Don't say that about yourself," she said softly, sliding her arms around his bare shoulders. "You've been wonderful to me," she said, "Besides... I didn't expect you to be pristine, you're an Elite after all." He wrapped his arms around her, one on her back and the other in her hair as she pressed closer.  
  
"Mira... I.. I love you," he whispered into her hair, "Even if I hardly know you."  
  
She closed her eyes, but it was too late, the tears escaped the cage of her dark lashes and fell to his smooth pale skin. She opened her mouth to tell him, but the words locked up in her throat. After the heartbreak of Brian, she couldn't... The words wouldn't come despite her feelings. "I'm sorry," she said, "It's not you." Though she could sense his disappointment, he continued to hold her, running his fingers through her hair.  
  
"I was engaged once," she said softly, "And.. I thought he was the one. I thought he would be with me forever. I was so wrong.. so wrong. He had been cheating on me the whole time. I do.. have feelings for you, but.. I.. I'm scared."  
  
Riven closed his eyes, "It's alright," he said softly, taking her back with him when he laid down in the grass. "Forget about all that for now... I've found it to be the only way to ever enjoy anything in life."  
  
****  
  
Riven walked into the palace at about eleven, having dropped Mira off at her apartment, given her a goodnight kiss and the cat a good scritch before heading back with a slight spring in his step and a weight lifted from his heart. She didn't care what he had been, she loved what he was now, and even if she couldn't say it, he still knew it to be true. He swirled into his room and flopped onto his bed, though he didn't feel like sleeping at the moment. Riven forced it upon himself though, having decided to get back to work tomorrow, Flagoon's awakening had replaced the energy he'd lost in that fight.  
  
****  
  
Morning came early and found Riven already dressed in his uniform and eating breakfast, though he still wished he could eat with Mira. Riven was determined to see her in the afternoon once his shift was over. Zelan was the first to enter the room and blink at Riven.  
  
He blinked a few times, ~"You look much better,"~ he said.  
  
Riven smirked, ~"Amazing what falling in love can do,"~ he replied saucily. Zelan raised an eyebrow.  
  
~"So is THAT were you've been the last two days?"~ the young chimera asked as he got himself a cup of coffee.  
  
~"Yep."~ Once more, Riven received a long look,~ "What?! I didn't do anything bad!"~ he exclaimed defensively, ~"Okay, so I slept on the same couch with her, but it's not like I did anything other than drool on her a bit, she survived!"~  
  
Zelan cracked up, his firm expression dissolving into a giggle fit and he had to sit down or risk spilling his coffee. ~"Alright, I forgive you, but you're going to have a lot of explaining to do to dad."~  
  
~"Sorry to say this, but he can kiss my ass. I was technically on sick- leave anyway."~ Riven took a bite of his cold cereal directly after his words as if punctuating the statement. ~"Besides, I've got something that will help us."~  
  
Zelan looked up from his coffee, ~"And what is that?"~  
  
Riven shook his head, ~"In the meeting.. Grey will probably want to call one after I tell him."~ Once he finished his cereal, Riven put his bowl and spoon into the sink, rinsing them and heading out of the room.  
  
~"Yo,"~ a voice, Riven's voice, came from their earplugs. ~"Sorry, I ended up falling asleep at a friend's house. I'm alright,"~ he continued, then waited for the reaming he would likely receive from Grey.  
  
Silence greeted him for a long moment before a low growl, ~"And WHY the HELL COULDN'T YOU AT LEAST CALL?"~ Riven was glad he'd removed his earplug at the sound of the growl, he heard the shout emitted from it even at arm's length.  
  
~"DAD! Please refrain for yelling over the com..."~ Zelan's voice rejoined immediately afterward with a hint of pain etched in it. Riven held the plug closer to his ear and heard a faint mumble that sounded like 'Gomen'.  
  
~"Riven, report to my room immediately,"~ Grey stated in a modified tone.  
  
"Hai." Riven heaved a sigh, squared his shoulders and headed to Grey's room, finding both the Chimera and his lover there. Amelia didn't look to pleased either. Grey looked... pissed would be an understatement.  
  
~"Where have you been?"~ he demanded the moment the door was closed.  
  
Riven stood where he had been the moment Grey started speaking, feeling ill at ease. The scar on his chest stung. ~"At a friend's house,"~ he replied. ~"I went into the city and ended up falling asleep there."~  
  
Grey ground his teeth together, ~"Why didn't you at least tell us where you were?"~  
  
Now, Riven gathered his courage and lifted his chin slightly, ~"Because, I was technically on sick-leave anyway and you're not my nanny."~  
  
~"You NEED one,"~ Grey snapped irritably, ~"You obviously can't remember to be responsible enough to tell me where you went. There're only FOUR of us against an army of Mazoku- for all I knew you could have been killed! I'm not so sure about you, but _I_ don't feel like dying again anytime soon!"~  
  
Riven refused to lower his eyes, he matched Grey stare for stare, "We're not so outnumbered as you think," he stated, "I have Flagoon."  
  
~"Flagoon is dead-"~ Grey started to say, then backtracked, going over what was just said. ~"You.. HAVE Flagoon?"~  
  
The taller man nodded slightly, ~"Those weird dreams were Flagoon trying to talk to me, it took a revelation for it to contact me fully. We need Sylphiel to revive the tree though. There's a piece of it in the center crater of Siraag, I have the spirit, but Sylphiel has the spell. With Flagoon revived it will give the people on this world hope that we'll win in the coming darkness and we can use that power to combat the Mazoku. We don't have that much time though. They probably know that we have at least one key to defeat them."~  
  
Grey stood in silence, Amelia sat with her eyes wide, unable to believe what she'd heard. Finally, the Chimera reached for his wristcom, "Everyone please report to my room. NOW... that includes you, Kiza."  
  
*****  
  
"So.. we've gotta find some chick to resurrect this TREE to kill these really powerful and evil demons who can kick our butts in ten seconds if they wanted?" Wryan reiterated, silence reigned and after a moment, Riven nodded- once he realized he was the only one who was going to answer. "Okay, I'm in."  
  
Kiza snorted, "I don't like the odds. It's crazy. I don't have much of a choice, though, do I? It's MY world after all."  
  
"Right, I'll be in charge of looking for her!" Wryan immediately volunteered, grinning wolfishly.  
  
Riven's brow twitched slightly at the redhead's enthusiasm to go looking through the women. Zelan, however, was more intelligent, "Riven, is there any clues as to where to start looking for her?"  
  
"Flagoon isn't being helpful on this part," he answered after a moment, "It just keeps giving me a picture of the sun caught in the branches of a tree and a feeling that she'll have something to do with me." He sighed, "Sorry, that's not very helpful, is it?"  
  
Grey had been silent for some time, but finally, he spoke up, "I remember seeing a scientist.. on Victory Station, and in the lab near Siraag that looked exactly like Sylphiel. That might be her."  
  
"Can always try," Amelia stated, smiling, "I'm sure Grey or I would be able to recognize her if we saw her, new body or not, and Riven would more than likely know if he met her, so we'll be in charge of looking for her."  
  
The older chimera nodded agreement, "Riven, you get whatever it is of Flagoon from that crater. Kiza, Wryan, Zelan, you two are to hold down the fort here."  
  
"Um.. wouldn't it be helpful if I knew some magic?" Wryan imposed upon the group. The mages exchanged glances and Riven finally sighed.  
  
"Fine, one spell."  
  
Kiza glowered at Wryan as he grinned in triumph. "Make sure it's something useful! And big!" the redhead completely missed the sly look that crossed Riven's face before it was stuffed away into a dark corner.  
  
"Of course..."  
  
Grey cleared his throat, "Meeting over," he stated and they filed out, Amelia and Grey heading down the hall to go to the lab in Siraag to see if that scientist girl was Sylphiel. Zelan and Kiza moved off to go on duty while Wryan hung around Riven expectantly.  
  
"Alright, let's go to the garden," the mage said, "Less stuff to fix if things go wrong."  
  
Wryan gnawed on his lower lip, "What spell are you planning on teaching me?" he asked.  
  
"If you keep being pesky I won't teach you anything." Immediately, Wryan shut his trap and didn't say another word until they had stopped on a wide lawn in the garden with a good stretch of grass before them. On a balcony, Amelia XXXIX watched with interest. She had been looking at the birds with pair of binoculars- as well as into random windows or up at the sky- but now she focused them on Wryan and Riven.  
  
Riven stood in front of Wryan, waiting a moment, "Relax," he said softly, "Close your eyes and reach into yourself." He placed his fingers upon the much shorter redhead's temples, finding Wryan's inexpert groping in his head and taking firm hold of them. ~Go here,~ he directed, ~Reach for this area whenever you're going to do a spell. You feel that? That's your aura, your power source, what you use to cast the spells, always make sure to not use it all. You can drain quite a bit before you feel the effects and you pass out, but once you've used that much and you wake up again and start using more things will likely go bad. Spells can go out of control, and likely take on a life of their own, draining you completely. That causes death, or if it doesn't, you can never use magic again.~  
  
The mage could feel Wryan's fear at that warning and he felt he'd been specific enough to continue, ~First, take some of this- make a bubble and suck more power into this space- between your hands. Hold them up and concentrate.~ Now Riven let his student do things on his own, only watching with detached interest. ~Good.. These are the words you use....~  
  
Amelia XXXIX scowled. "They're just standing there! Wait-" she leaned over the baluster of her balcony when she saw Wryan lift his hands, a ball of glowing light forming between them, it pulsed and wavered as if unstable, but then he seemed to get the hang of it and it focused into a steady glow. "He's teaching Wryan magic!" she announced and growled in frustration. "Why does HE get to learn and I don't?!" she demanded, though she wasn't really expecting an answer.  
  
"Because, he needs something to use against the Mazoku," Zelan's voice stated. "Without even one spell he's no use as a bodyguard against them. Unless he's got a Weapon of Light up his ass and didn't tell us about it."  
  
The princess swirled around to glare at her own guard and pursed her lips, "What's going on today? You all had some special meeting of some sort, so what was it?"  
  
Zelan gazed at her for a long moment, his expression blank and finally, "I suppose it's alright to tell you. Riven has been having visions from Flagoon, the holy tree, about a way to defeat the Mazoku. Mom and dad are going to go out looking for the one who can revive Flagoon as will Riven and Wryan, Kiza, and I will stay here to guard you and your father."  
  
Briefly she glanced away, "The Priestess," her lips formed and she looked back at Zelan, "And why can't we go?" she asked, putting on an indignant tone.  
  
Her guard shrugged, "Because you wouldn't recognize her if you saw her, Mom, Dad, and Riven, would though."  
  
Pouting, Amelia XXXIX turned her back on him, peering down into the gardens at Wryan and Riven. By now, the mage had stepped away from Wryan and was directing him in movements of some sort with some sort of phrase to go along with them. Finally, Wryan seemed to have it and Riven left him in the garden practicing some of the moves and words.  
  
*****  
  
By late evening everyone had returned, Riven haven taken some time off to visit his girlfriend. Amelia, Riven, and Grey sat in the latter's room, ~"Nothing. Even if her name was Silfia or something and she looked exactly like Sylphiel, I just don't think that was her. It didn't seem like her the way even Kiza seems like Lina on some gut level."~ Grey sighed, leaning back in his char and folding his arms on his chest as his legs crossed automatically.  
  
Riven shook his head, ~"I've been through the city looking for 'signs' but nothing."~ Amelia had nothing to say, she hadn't found any of the other scientists at the lab to be anything like Sylphiel either, Grey already knew it and there wasn't much point repeating the fact that the day had been a failure.  
  
~"Right... Maybe you can draw that symbol Flagoon showed you?"~ the ex- princess offered instead, getting up to get a pad of paper and pencil, handing it to Riven. After a bit of laborious work, Riven regretfully admitted to not being a very good artist and handed the pad over to Grey who looked rather amused.  
  
~"I have to agree, you're worse than Filia."~  
  
Amelia sniggered, ~"Not as bad as Lina though."~  
  
~"Or Gourry,"~ Grey rejoined and they shared a brief bit of laughter at Riven's expense before settling down. Grey took a breath, sighed, stood, ending the meeting with that gesture. ~"Try and get Flagoon to give you something else, but rest too, you still look a little pale."~ Riven nodded slightly, heading out of the room, closing the door behind him.  
  
****  
  
Amelia XXXIX smirked at herself in the mirror, though her eyes kept darting back toward Zelan who stood near the door looking nonchalant, but she knew he kept looking at her... Why this caused a slight flutter in her stomach like butterflies, as if.. No. How silly! She was in love with Grey! She would have him if she had to commit murder to do it too!  
  
Only a week after that crashed meeting of the major officials, her father was now going to have a major celebration dance type thing because.. well, to make the long journey it took to get there worth having come for. They'd get great food, supposedly wonderful music- though it would mostly be old waltzes or something, and they were all staying in the palace in various rooms. They had permanently switched Grey into Amelia's room a while back just to make room for the dignitaries. This irked the princess to no end.  
  
Meanwhile, the palace had a new Janitor, he had been working for the science lab near the Dead City, but he kept breaking stuff by accident and Katachi had thought maybe Riven would like having someone that he didn't have to work for/with around to talk to, though Riven was rarely in the palace whenever he was off duty anymore because of some girl in the city. The amazing thing about Riven was that he didn't talk about personal things, such as himself or things he was interested in, as if afraid of them, and his girlfriend was one of the things he didn't talk about. Amelia XXXIX hoped that he was just as discreet about palace matters when talking to his girlfriend.  
  
She lifted her brush and began pulling it through her hair slowly, looking up to find that Zelan was now standing behind her, looking at her hair. He reached out a hesitant hand and touched the silky locks. "Sometimes," he murmured, "I wish hadn't been born this way. I wish I was a full human," he said and moved away once more, this time going to her window and standing with his arms folded on his chest.  
  
The princess set her brush on the vanity table once more, watching him as he simply stood where he was. He had grown rather tall lately, now taller than the princess when he had been an inch or two shorter when she'd first met him. He looked a lot like his father too. "I think you look fine the way you are," she told him. She had never heard the stories of her ancestor telling his father the exact same thing, she had no clue.  
  
Zelan gave a slightly bitter smile, "Yeah," he replied, "Well you're on the other side of the wall, of course it looks fine..." He shook his head and looked out the window at the early morning. His parents and Riven were still running around the city looking for Sylphiel, a woman he had only heard of from Lina's adventure stories but she was said to be very important. Tried her hardest to find something of Flagoon to bring the Holy Tree back, but nothing she did would work, and now, this far into the future, her soul would finally accomplish that goal. Flagoon's time for rebirth had come apparently.  
  
Outside, servants were getting decorations set up in the garden, Wryan was still gloating over his learning a single spell and kept saying he wanted to try it out, but Zelan had the feeling the redhead was too nervous it would cause damage that he would have to pay for. He and Kiza seemed to get along well enough, as long as they didn't get in each other's way when it came to food or money, they seemed rather well suited to each other. Yet there was a lingering doubt that they were missing someone, or at least Zelan felt like that, he hadn't mentioned the feeling to his father as of yet, but he figured he would sometime before the party that would start at something like seven in the evening.  
  
"Oh I'm bored," Amelia XXXIX stated, leaning back on the stool she perched on in front of her vanity. "Zelan, do some tricks for me."  
  
His fingers clenched on his arm and he forced himself not to blast her, "I'm a guard, not a dog," he replied without looking at her.  
  
She sighed, getting up, her pale green dress-robes sweeping the floor like a kimono as she moved over to him, putting her hand and face on his arm. The back of her mind marveled at how she could still feel his muscles under the rock-hard skin. "You've been working out, haven't you?" she asked innocently, genuinely curious.  
  
"Swordwork, yes," he replied, though he gazed down at her suspiciously. Zelan looked away quickly though, having his face turned toward her intensified the very faint sent of lavender that was the soap she used and though no human could smell it. His heart pounded and he could feel his blush rising in his face, thankfully nothing else was rising...  
  
Once more she sighed, moving away from him and untying her robe, letting it slide from her shoulders, then down to the floor in a puddle of silk. On her body was a short matching silk nightgown with spaghetti straps over her shoulder... she wasn't wearing a bra. Hurriedly Zelan turned his back toward her, gazing out the window with slightly widened eyes, his entire face had gone red and that calming spell Riven had taught him for times when hormones got the better of him fled his mind completely. From behind him, Amelia XXXIX laughed, glancing over her creamy shoulder at him and moved behind a silk screen to change into the clothes she would wear for the day.  
  
*****  
  
Riven was tired, pissed, but mostly tired of looking for Sylphiel. The only thing he'd been able to get out of Flagoon is that she would be working for Earth. So, he'd gone to all the plant stores in the city, pretending to be looking for some rare breed of flower that didn't exist anymore- he'd made sure to pick one that was odd to make his lie plausible and his senses hadn't tingled like when he'd met Kiza for the first time. In the end, he bought a dozen roses and headed toward the Terra Savings building where Mira had mentioned she worked one night over coffee. It was around noon, "Maybe talking with her will sort things out," he muttered to himself, heading into the building. He was too preoccupied to look up as he entered.  
  
He was still wearing his Elite uniform, but at least he had a jacket to cover the insignia, but people still recognized the fabric anyway and treated him with a bit of fear, even awe if they recognized him for a Mage Elite. He was left alone mostly, as well, though a few times he'd used a bit of force when it came to random crime happening in broad daylight.  
  
The lobby of the building was a wide with marble tiles on the floor in a massive pattern- that Riven would have recognized, had he been paying attention or had there not been a few random people standing around as well as some chairs covering part of the design- not to mention the huge front desk at which a scrawny older man sat.  
  
"Hello," Riven said as he came up to the desk, folding his arms on the top. It WOULD have dwarfed any normal person, but to Riven, the desk was just a tad bit high.  
  
"Do you have an appointment?" the man asked, gazing through his bifocals at Riven, tipping his head up and down in attempt to find the right place at which to look at him through the lenses.  
  
Riven sighed, "No, I just thought I'd take Mira out to lunch, is that alright?" he asked politely, "If not, could you have someone send these up to her." He lifted the roses into view.  
  
The receptionist gave a hrm, "Mira Lee?" he asked and Riven realized that she'd never told him her last name.  
  
"Redhead?" Riven asked, hiding his surprise with an inquisitive expression in return and the man nodded, "Yeah, that's her."  
  
"Give me a moment," he said and dialed a number on his phone. "Mira Lee, there's an Elite in the lobby..."  
  
*****  
  
-Mira Lee, there's an Elite in the lobby...- John Rudder's voice came over the intercom on floor forty-five. A burst of laughter filled the room and Mira covered her face with her hands, blushing dark as her hair.  
  
"JOHN!" she squawked, getting up and hurrying to the elevator, hearing cat- calls from her coworkers the whole way. She was still blushing when the elevator doors opened what seemed an eternity later to let her out into the lobby. Her eyes immediately fell on Riven, where he stood leaning against the desk apparently talking to John and awaiting her arrival. Next, her gaze registered that he was in uniform, and that he was holding a ton of long-stemmed roses. Her mouth fell open and she just stood there in shock until the elevator doors started closing and she hurried out.  
  
Riven turned and grinned, "Bai," he said and went to meet Mira, sweeping her up and placing a kiss on her lips, "Your knight has come to take you away," he said over-dramatically, then sniggered, "Well sort of. You free for lunch?"  
  
"Of course!" she agreed immediately, feeling her feet being placed on the floor and he drew back to present the roses to her. "Oh God! Those must have cost a fortune!" she exclaimed.  
  
He gave a snort, "Doesn't matter," he said, "I found out they're paying me twice as much just cause I can do a few tricks." He put his arm around her shoulders and walked with her toward the door. "Ceipheed," he muttered, "Today has absolutely sucked- except for this part," he flashed a grin.  
  
"What's wrong?" she asked, "The princess being trouble again?"  
  
Slowly, he shook his head, "No... Looking for Sylphiel still. Flagoon's only told me she 'works for Earth' somehow and that's not real helpful. I've been to every damn flower shop and nursery in this entire city looking for Blue Striped Gardanias- which I happen to know died out a hundred years even before HIS time, so I used that excuse to get directions to all the other flower shops there were."  
  
Mira snuggled close, "I'm sorry things aren't going well for you," she told him and wasn't just saying that. She knew that they weren't likely to save the universe without her, so she cherished every moment of normality and time she had with Riven, knowing that it might be over in a second.  
  
Riven heaved a sigh, looking straight ahead with a glazed look in his eyes, a sign that he was thinking and keeping him from tripping over small dogs and children was now her responsibility. But her eye caught something- in a store window was a beautiful long black dress, just perfect for some fancy dinner of some sort. When her attention wandered, she stopped and looked longingly at the dress. The sudden stop brought Riven back to himself and he looked in at the dress with a sly grin.  
  
"Do you want it?" he asked her.  
  
Immediately, she blushed, "I- It probably costs a fortune!" she exclaimed once more, blushing to her roots as he pulled her into the store.  
  
"So?" he asked as if money really didn't mean anything to him, and it really didn't. They traveled through the lobby toward one part of the store where the merchandise was. "Come on then, find your size," he told her, taking the flowers from her hands and gently pushing her toward the racks upon which the dress from the window and a few other dresses hung. The store clerk looked at them curiously, giggling faintly.  
  
"But- I couldn't-" Mira protested faintly and found the flowers back in her hands as he sorted through the racks.  
  
"This one looks about right," he stated, holding one of the dresses up to her, "With some nice shoes the length won't matter. Here, go try it on!" Mira was breathless as she was shunted along to the dressing room and popped into a stall. Obediently, she tried on the dress, finding that he had been perfect in judging her size and if she stood on her toes the length was perfect as well. Reclaiming her clothes, she folded the dress into her arms, finding Riven still waiting outside the dressing room. "Did it fit?" he asked and she nodded, blushing once more as he smirked. "Good, you can wear it for me tonight."  
  
"I thought you said you had to be at that..."  
  
Riven smirked, "You're coming," he stated as if she had no choice in the matter. "Now- we'll just have to find something for me!" he suddenly gushed, grabbing up a random pink frilly dress from the rack, "What about this?" he asked, holding it up. Sadly, it would have only come to the middle of his shins.  
  
Mira coughed, then laughed, "I don't think pink is your color."  
  
He pouted, "But I like the frills," he joked and put the dress back in favor of placing a kiss on her forehead, "I've already got something to wear," he explained as he led her toward the desk, "Do you have any shoes?" She nodded immediately and he gave her a look but let her be over that little detail, if she was determined to buy her own shoes, he would let her, besides, they still had to go to lunch. Flipping his bank card through the scan slot the dress was charged to him and packed away by the cashier into a bag.  
  
"Have a nice night," the teenage girl with acne and bleached hair said as they left. "Wow...what a guy!" she gushed once they had passed through the doors and onto the sidewalk outside.  
  
***** 


	27. WHAHAHAHA!!! I'm so evil!

Chapter 29  
  
Another ball going on  
  
  
  
Yet another televised event that the Mage Elite's had to attend, at least Riven wasn't stuck sitting at a table for hours on end listening to a completely pointless argument over what they couldn't do to the Mazoku. This time Riven, Amelia, Wryan, and Kiza were dressed up and mingling among the guests, supposedly undercover, but everyone knew who they were by now and it didn't make a difference either way. Despite being on duty, Riven had brought a date, his beloved little Mira Lee, who's last name was pure coincidence the same as his own made up last name. He figured it was some sort of sign that they were meant to be together and left it at that.  
  
Mira was dressed in stark black, a form fitting dress with no back and a collar down the front though there was a keyhole cut to flash the sweet curve of her cleavage. The color accented her straight strawberry red hair which was carefully crafted into a fantastic hairstyle studded with rhinestones- a style created by Quint for her best friend in the world who just happened to be swept away to a magical place filled with celebrities and rulers from all sorts of lands and worlds throughout the known universe. From her ears hang earrings Riven had surprised her with a few nights before which were actual diamonds she'd come to find out after taking them to a jewelers, where he'd gotten them, she had no clue, but the jeweler said he'd never seen work like that before and it seemed very old. Mira wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth, but she was curious.  
  
She smiled, she glided, and she glittered as much as all the rich women there combined, at least in Riven's eyes and all the women looked at her with envy to find that she was dating one of the mysterious Mage Elite's who had seemed to keep to themselves and withheld against all attempts at charming them. As much as he could, Riven hung near her, but let her have her space when she was talking with some women or whatnot, but he also remembered his duties and kept an eye on the princess.  
  
At the moment, Amelia, the Elite was talking with some other girl with blonde hair and dressed in a violent orange, Kiza was relieving people of their wallets on the other side of the room, and Mira was talking to a tall girl with golden-red hair wrapped up into a bun and wearing a green dress. Riven felt a chill go down his back as he looked at that woman, having a brief double vision of her form overlaid with a snarling monster of immense power. Nonchalantly, he made his way over to Mira, sliding his arms around her and giving the woman a curious look.  
  
"Ohh," the woman said, her eyes were green too, an almost unnatural green, "I think I recognize you!" she said, "I guess you're supposed to be undercover?" she asked with a giggle, "I'm Niana!" she stated, holding out one gloved hand and he took it out of politeness.  
  
Once more, he suppressed his shiver and quickly released her hand. "I'm sorry, but there's something I want to talk to Mira about for a second..." he gave a slight wink as if to suggest he had something romantic in mind and Niana immediately giggled, shooing them away. As he led Mira away, the hairs on the back of his neck were crawling despite having his hair braided- with a black bow tied on the end to match his black tux. "Mira, I want you to stay near me from now on," he stated softly. Upon reaching a slightly secluded place, he turned toward her and looked into her eyes. Tilting her face back with his fingers, he planted his lips upon hers in a passionate kiss. Sadly, he kept his mind on the matters at hand and drew back from her slightly, "It's important," he said to her, gazing into her widened eyes.  
  
"Alright," she agreed breathlessly and slid her arms around his waist, laying her face against his tuxedoed shoulder for a moment.  
  
~"Riven, now isn't the time to be putting the moves on her,"~ Grey's voice reminded.  
  
~"I'm not.. there's something wrong,"~ Riven replied softly and gently released Mira enough to move out of the secluded spot, she continued to hang onto his arm, his fingers twined with hers. ~"I can't pin what it is, but it's wrong."~  
  
Grey gave a slight nod from where he stood stiffly beside the king. The princess had just finished dancing with one man with short white-blonde spikes an blue eyes and now she turned to talk to the woman who had introduced herself as Niana. A few words were exchanged, then Niana moved off and Amelia XXXIX turned towards them, gliding through the crowd with grace in her spidery like black dress draped with chiffon that seemed like cobwebs.  
  
"Oh, so THIS is who you run off to after hours," the princess said upon entering a polite talking distance, "Isn't much, is she?" her voice carried a hint of disdain.  
  
Riven's fingers briefly tightened on Mira's and he forced himself to smile, "You're just jealous," he replied.  
  
Amelia XXXIX's eyes narrowed, "What would I be jealous of?" she asked.  
  
Mira tried her hardest not to cry, her love's arm going around her shoulders helped to bolster her spirits, "That she's sweet enough for me and you aren't," he replied smoothly, though his eyes darted around the room a moment.  
  
The princess opened her mouth to respond, but suddenly found her arm being yanked by Riven as he let go of Mira and shoved them both to one side. Mira stumbled on the edge of her dress and fell to the floor, the princess landing on top over her. Her eyes immediately lifted toward Riven.  
  
For the small insurance agent, time seemed to slow, Riven was moving, the princess laying stunned on top of her and a dark red blast of light arrowing down from a balcony towards them. Her voice burst from her throat in a cry of panic as the shot slammed into his back and he stumbled forward, his beautiful hair fried where the deep bleeding hole was in his back. He fell to his knees, coughing with one hand to his stomach, a flickering white light coming from his palm, but it wasn't long before it died out and he sagged forward to brace himself on the floor with one hand, his other still to his stomach, attempting to recast the spell.  
  
Wryan and Amelia burst through the crowd, surrounding their fallen member and the princess. Mira stood with her hands held together against her chest for a moment before she came forward to her love. "Riven-" she whispered, touching his face. "Oh my god... Riven!" tears welled in her eyes as she watched blood drip from the edge of his soaked tux coat.  
  
"Wryan, Kiza, after the attacker, Amelia, take care of Riven, Zel and I will get the king out," came Grey's voice over the earplug, then, in a slightly less harsh note, ~"Riven, you alright?"~  
  
~"No..."~ Riven gasped in return, ~"Something's drained my power. I can't..."~  
  
"Shimita," was Grey's reply.  
  
Dimly, Riven was aware of Amelia attempting to heal him, but it wasn't doing much, at least not enough to make a difference, she wasn't as powerful as a golden dragon.  
  
"Oh god! Oh god!" Mira moaned, shoving the princess off and crawling over to him, holding Riven's head against her chest and she felt a tug on her shoulder. Looking back, she saw the princess with a wild look in her eyes.  
  
"Lets make ourselves useful and get some bandages," the princess said and Mira started to let go of Riven, seeing the sense in that despite her unwillingness to leave him.  
  
"Don't leave me-" Riven gasped, attempting to clutch at Mira with one of his bloody hands, the liquid had flowed from his back down his arms, most of it being soaked up by the fabric of his tux, some stained the floor.  
  
Mira shook her head, "I'll be back, I promise!" She scrambled to her feet and hurried after the princess as she ran through the chaos that raged across the ballroom floor, dignitaries tried desperately to find a way out, fearing for their lives and Amelia XXXIX had hold of Mira's hand, dragging her into a hall... Out of Riven's dimming sight.  
  
"Amelia!" he gasped, falling onto his stomach when his arms gave out finally.  
  
The Elite woman hovered in his view briefly, mostly all he could see was her knee. "I'm here, Riven, I'm doing what I can-"  
  
Riven gathered his remaining strength and shoved himself up, "No!" his voice had faded to a mere grunt. "Mira- save her- she's..." he tried to say the last word, but it wouldn't come out, his voice had given and he tried to impress upon Amelia the importance of it by grabbing her hands and shoving her away from him. She stared at him in shock. "The princess!" he whispered and fell onto his side.  
  
Around them, the ballroom had emptied except for the wounded Elite and Amelia. She stood, her eyes wide, "Protect the Princess?" she repeated and saw his minuscule nod before he collapsed onto his side on the floor. Turning, she ran towards the hall, calling into her wristcom for updates.  
  
Silence pervaded the room then, all he could hear were his fading heartbeats. So much like the last time he died. That roar of blood ebbing into the squeal that was utter silence as his life seeped out onto the ground. He lay gasping for air, tears stinging his eyes as he thought of what might happen without him. Too late, he'd thought of the future that first time, and now he had planned ahead, yet fate stepped in the way. "I'm doomed to just keep dying, aren't I?" he thought bitterly, though he didn't know he'd said it aloud.  
  
"I can save you," a voice murmured. Slowly, Riven opened his eyes to find Niana standing above him with a slight smirk on her lips. "But at a cost. Join us and you will have eternal life, immense power, anything you want..."  
  
"At the cost of the love of my life," Riven stated bitterly, though it was more of a weak whisper that caused him to cough blood and more to gush from his back. "I'd rather die than let you kill her."  
  
Niana flicked her hair back with a shake of her head. "You're a fool, we'll kill the Priestess whether you die or not." Riven's eyes widened suddenly as things fell into place. Sylphiel.. Mira... He had been looking in all the wrong places. What an idiot.  
  
Firming his roiling emotions, though, he stated, "I'm not dead yet." His eyes half closed and vision blurred, he wasn't dead yet, but he soon would be. His magic had been sealed, he was helpless. She barked a laugh, moving closer to shove him onto his stomach with her high-heeled foot. Ruthlessly, she stepped on his back, shoving the spiked heel of her shoe into the wide hole of his wound. He would have screamed, if he'd had the breath to, but his lungs were filling with blood and her weight on his chest had pushed the remaining air out. Pain blurred his vision into a red haze.  
  
Niana smirked viscously as the pool of blood spread further from its new exit through his mouth and nose. She could feel his pain and relished it. "Oh yes," she murmured, "More! Your pain is so delicious! I want more!" she lifted her foot and stomped down hard, bones cracking under the impact and her heel breaking the skin and burring itself into the muscle of his back. "YES!" she moaned as if in the throes of orgasm and ground her foot down harder.  
  
~"RAH TILT!"~ a voice shouted from the balcony above. Niana swirled around belatedly to find the intense blast of astral energy engulfing her. Briefly, she screamed and winked out, possibly dead, hopefully... Wryan stood on the balcony, breathing heavily as he stared at Riven who remained still on the marble, soaked in his own blood and the pool extending almost three feet away from him. He'd never known people had so much blood. The mage was almost the same color as the marble floor had been and his eyes were open, staring blankly.  
  
Wryan turned, hurrying down the wide steps of the balcony dashing across the floor and pausing at the edge of the pool of blood, "Oh god," he murmured in shock at the sight, emotions welling up in his chest.  
  
The Elite firmed his lips, "No," he stated, "No. He can't die. He- just can't! I won't let him die!" Wryan rushed forward through the puddle of blood, dropping to his knees beside the body and reaching out his hands, taking hold of Riven's soaked coat and shaking, "Wake up! Wake up! You have to! You've got too much to do still!" He shook Riven harder when the corpse didn't respond.  
  
*****  
  
Grey pressed the button on his wristcom once more. "Someone answer me!" he demanded, but silence was returned. As if they had all dropped off the face of the earth. A cold knot settled in his stomach as that thought passed through his mind. He turned toward the king and his son as they stood in silence in a room deep within the palace in the center of a sealed square which was carved upon the floor and ceiling. Grey stood outside it as to be able to still cast magic while Zelan could not while within the doubly powered square.  
  
The king slowly sat, tears in his eyes, "He...was a great man," he said softly, shaking his head, "Even if he was a little odd sometimes, got worked up over little things and had a tendency to change his mind too much, he was still a very good man."  
  
Grey and Zelan were silent. The older Chimera man turned away to face the door of the room. He didn't want to believe that Riven had died, but it was more than likely. He'd sensed how powerful that blast had been and with Riven's power to have been sealed on top of that, it wasn't likely he'd gotten healed enough by Amelia to survive. Maybe they could fix whatever damage there was and restart his heart like they had done in the first place. The hope seemed dim in the light of the medical information he'd gotten disks of. There was a limit to what science could do, and in this case, Riven was probably past the limit.  
  
"I hate waiting," Zelan muttered, breaking the silence that had engulfed them.  
  
"Then I shall relieve your boredom," a voice echoed from the dark corners of the room. Another man who had drifted around the party stepped out of the wall, still wearing his tux, a man with spiked blonde-white hair and blue eyes. Zelan almost shuddered at the lack of any emotion but malicious amusement in the man's tone and the Mazoku's thin lips curled back to show fangs. He gave a laugh, "Scared, Kid? You should be. I'm going to kill you all. Slowly..."  
  
****  
  
Amelia continued running down the hall, she'd tossed her shoes and ripped off the long skirt of her dress in effort to catch up with the echoing footsteps of the princess and Mira. Her heart pounded in her chest and she hoped desperately that she would be able to catch up with them. Mira was Sylphiel... and the shrine maiden had fallen in love with the one who had destroyed her home, family, and friends... How ironic. But now wasn't the time to think about that. How long had Riven known? Had he even known? She thought she saw his lips say 'Sylphiel', or was she wrong? Perhaps he just made it up to make Amelia go after them? Would he really do that just to protect the one he loved?  
  
The Elite rounded a corner and slid to a stop. She gazed from the corridor she'd just left to the one before her and fell to her knees. "Oh no," she said softly. They were the same. She'd been running down the same corridor since she'd left Riven.  
  
"That's right, you're trapped." Amelia shoved herself to her feet and turned to face the woman who stood leaning against a wall, a cigarette between her fingers. She had long wavy blonde hair and brown eyes, deep red smirking lips and a red dress.  
  
"Zelas?" Amelia asked nervously.  
  
The woman threw back her head and laughed, stepping away from the wall, "As if the Greater Beastmaster would lower herself to disposing of pests like you? No, I was sent by her minion, Xelloss, to kill you." Slowly, Amelia clenched her fists, nerving herself to do what she had to do.  
  
*****  
  
Mira panted and finally staggered to a stop, "Why- are we going so far? Surely- there's something to use closer-" She started to turn back towards the way they'd come when the princess grabbed her arm roughly.  
  
"Actually, there is something closer that could have helped him, but it's more than likely too late." Mira spun to look at Amelia XXXIX, gaping at the bloodthirsty expression on the girl's face. Roughly, she pulled herself from the princess's grip and staggered back a few steps, running into a table set in the hallway upon which a vase with flowers stood. It fell to the floor with a silence-shattering crash. "Yes.. I dragged you all this way for nothing! At least nothing for you. I'll be getting something out of it," she stated, her eyes burning with madness, "I'll be getting Grey! Xelloss promised me that I'd get to have Grey if I kept them from discovering who you were. Now it doesn't matter if they know or not because they're all going to die! All except for Grey, he'll be mine."  
  
"You're insane!" Mira gasped, stepping back once more and losing balance, falling to the floor among the shards of pottery. The sound of ripping cloth- she whipped her head around to stare at a violet haired man who knelt beside her with a slight smirk on his face, his eyes squinted closed.  
  
For a brief moment, those eyes opened and he looked at her critically before speaking. "Very good work, princess," he murmured, standing slowly and moving toward Amelia XXXIX, "They don't have a chance in the world," he stated, his eyes still opened as he gazed at the preening princess.  
  
***** 


	28. So what if it's short?

Chapter 30  
  
Continuing the battle Scene! I just thought it'd be terribly mean if I left things the way they were for a bit. ^_~  
  
Wryan swallowed, his throat raw and eyes stinging. Riven was gone, or at least close enough to it for nothing to matter. He thought he'd seen the mage's eye twitch once but it might have been because he was being shaken violently. Kiza hadn't come back, neither had Amelia, or Grey, not a sound on the channel, almost like he was the only one left alive. "Everything's gone to hell," he muttered bitterly and wiped at his face with the back of his hand, smearing Riven's blood on his cheek by accident.  
  
"That's what generally happens when these guys get involved," a gentle voice stated and the sound of high heels clicking along the floor heralded the entrance of a very tall woman. She lifted a delicate hand and brushed her silky blonde bangs back from her face, revealing sapphire blue eyes, not quite as naive about the world as they had once been, but they still held a spark of hope for the human race. On her body she wore a modest but pretty dress of pale pearl pink. "He's not quite dead yet," she said as she came forward, aware of Wryan's intensely suspicious stare. "I'm on your side," she said softly with a faint smile touching her tiny lips.  
  
Once she reached Wryan's side, she crouched in the blood, holding her hands out over Riven's back, a flickering of intense white light glowing in her palms and radiating a softly soothing heat. Beneath them, the blood puddle began to recede and color returned to the mage's face, his eyes blinked and breath hitched in his throat, he lay still though until the wounds had completely closed over and not a single sign that he had been wounded remained except for the hole in the back of his coat and shirt.  
  
"What ARE you?" Wryan demanded of the blonde woman as she stood, helping Riven to his feet and bracing him when he swayed.  
  
"Arigato," Riven murmured, "Ryuzoku..."  
  
She smiled once more, "You might want to hurry, Xelloss and two other Mazoku are here still, one is attacking Amelia, the other Zelgadis, Xelloss is with your love."  
  
Riven closed his eyes tightly for a moment, his shoulders sagging. "Wryan.. See if you can help Amelia, I'm going to Grey."  
  
Suddenly the woman flipped her skirt up and drew out a huge mace, "If you don't mind, I'll take care of the Namagomi."  
  
The same expression occurred on two faces at exactly the same moment.... those two faces belonging to Riven and Wryan. She launched herself down a hall, a loud roar of "XELLLOOOOOSSSSS!!!!" echoing through the palace like a thunder-crash of doom.  
  
"Um.... Do I really wanna know where she got that mace from?" Riven asked rhetorically, then glanced at Wryan who was leering slightly in the direction the woman had taken. He smacked the shorter man on the face, "No! Off limits," he said firmly, "Go help Amelia!" Reluctantly, Wryan dashed off in another direction while Riven turned and headed down another hall toward the place they'd agreed to take the king should danger arise.  
  
*****  
  
Amelia slammed against a wall, sliding down it and moaning in pain. She'd managed to break herself out of the pocket dimension the Mazoku had created by summoning a fly that happened to be nearby, but it didn't help that she was still nearing her Time of Month. Fists of Justice could only do so much without her usual power backing them up.  
  
The blonde Mazoku sneered down at her, "Aww, Little hero doesn't want to play anymore?" she asked, "Too bad!"  
  
~"RAH TILT!"~  
  
The blast wafted through the Mazoku and she gave a shriek of pain, backing off from Amelia as Wryan skidded to a stop, standing over his coworker. "Never fear, Amelia Dear, Wryan's here!" he stated with a cheezy grin.  
  
"Ugh," the Mazoku woman stated, flipping her hair back from her shoulder, "How corny. It doesn't matter though, you'll never be able to defeat me, even with two of you. In fact, I think it'd be more fun this way." She cocked her head to the side slightly as she set her feet shoulder width apart and placed one hand on her silk-skirted hip.  
  
Amelia slowly climbed to her feet and swallowed, casting a healing spell on herself while things were at a pause, she didn't know when she'd get another chance, or if she'd get another chance. Wryan began to sweat. He'd never fought a Mazoku before, it had always been the real mages who messed with them, and now it was just him and Amelia- and he only knew one spell. Fine, he'd do things his way. His hand slid into his tux coat, pulling out the hilt of his psysword, a weapon he hadn't really used that often but knew right well he was good at it.  
  
"You're going to fight me with THAT thing?" she asked, "don't make me laugh!" though Wryan tricked himself into thinking he saw a hint of fear in the Mazoku's eyes as he focused his energy and flicked the power on. Now Wryan could see the similarities of spell-casting and using the psyswords, it took concentration and energy, but not the same type. This was why it was mostly hotheads armed with the strange weapons, they had the sheer personality to power them and aggression to spare.  
  
He wrung his hands slightly on the hilt of his psysword, concentrating and causing the blood-red blade to be emitted from the empty hole at the end. The light from it light up the hallway eerily as if a pool of molten lava had eaten through the ground and emerged there. Amelia had a psysword as well, but she hated swords for reasons of her own.  
  
The Mazoku chose to attack then, lifting her hand to blast them, but just at the right moment, Amelia dived to the side, Wryan going the other way. They converged on the woman at the same time, the redhead slicing while Amelia's Fists of Justice reigned Holy Retribution upon her from the other side. "KYAAAHHHH!" they cried in unison.  
  
Things weren't as simple as all that, though, the Mazoku, though wounded slightly by both attacks, was not beaten and she first blasted Amelia back, then turned to face Wryan, intending to play with fresher prey. She lifted both her hands, throwing bolts of black energy at her opponent, but he dodged, narrowly being missed. Before long, the walls looked like Swiss Cheese but both were determined to win and Amelia wasn't much help, having fallen against another wall and been unable to move without shooting pain in her leg.  
  
~"FLAAAARRRE ARROW!"~ a shout from down the hall announced a volley of fiery streaks gliding through the air and instinctively, Amelia ducked her head down as the floor was blasted out from under where Wryan and the Mazoku were battling. Kiza emerged from the smoke with what looked like a janitor behind her wielding another psysword. The shorter girl smirked aggressively and flashed a victory sign when the smoke cleared to reveal that the Mazoku had fled. Wryan, who stood on the other side of the hole leading down into the first story of the palace was fuming.  
  
"You could have hit me with that!" he roared and Kiza didn't look all that disturbed by the fact.  
  
Amelia quickly spoke up and defused the situation as best she could by stating, "It would probably be a good idea to go help Grey now," she said to them, but found herself being lifted by the strong arms of what looked like a brown haired, brown eyed Gourry-clone. She gave a soft laugh, "Well... friends are just popping up in strange places," she stated and held on as he carried her down the hall while Kiza and Wryan dashed on ahead, going towards the 'safe room'.  
  
Before they could get far, though, a body crashed down through the ceiling from the third floor and landed on the floor before them. The dust cleared slowly and Amelia blinked a few times, "Xelloss?"  
  
The Mazoku gave a very soft moan of pain and twitched. "Hiya Amelia!" a familiar voice called down from the hole in the ceiling. A blonde woman holding a hefty mace smiled brightly. "Mind tossing Namagomi back up here for me?"  
  
"FILIA!" Amelia gaped. She had thought about finding out what had happened to the Golden Dragon, but then things had happened, she'd gotten distracted. Filia had simply solved the problem for them. During the distraction, Xelloss slowly rolled to his hands and knees and fazed out.  
  
Mira peered down from behind Filia, "Mrs. Amelia," she called, her eyes worried, "Are you alright?"  
  
"Yes, I'm alright," Amelia said back. "Where's the princess?"  
  
The redheaded woman's eyes narrowed, "We tied her up," she replied firmly. "She.. She's trying to get Grey for herself by getting everyone else in the universe killed!"  
  
Amelia slowly nodded, "Somehow, I figured as much," she said. "You three might as well come down here, we're going to go help Grey-" The palace shook with an immense blast from somewhere near the center of the building, cutting off Amelia's words and knocking those who were standing off their feet.  
  
*****  
  
Grey panted, blood seeping down his face from where his rock skin had split and he glanced toward where Zelan had fallen, covering the terrified king with his solid body. He turned his eyes toward the Mazoku who stood among the rubble that was strewn about the area, untouched by the dust or spells that had been thrown at him. He cursed under his breath at the lack of sufficient numbers or even firepower to combat even one demon.  
  
That was when his eyes strayed past the Mazoku and toward the melted doors. Another figure stood there, the heads of ghostly serpents writhing around him and a grim look upon his face. Grey felt himself pale.  
  
"I don't appreciate being blasted in the back," Riven called into the room, "How about you face me in a fair fight.. or as fair as you damned creatures can get."  
  
The Mazoku swirled around to face his challenger, his smirk of superiority faltering but it firmed, despite the severe misgivings the demented creature had about his own mortality. "I accept your challenge," he said, "You'll probably be more fun than these pitiful creatures were."  
  
"Fine," Riven stated, his mismatched eyes glowing for a brief moment, "Let's take it outside." Without even twitching, Riven's power lashed out, blasting the roof and three stories above it upward and into the sky.  
  
"My—palace..." the king mumbled in despair.  
  
Grey retreated back beside his son and the king, checking on their wounds before attending himself, "That's just typical Riven," he said, "You ever wonder how the Dead City got all pot-marked? He's your reason."  
  
The two opponents glided up into the sky through the hole and a little further into the sky before loud explosions and flashes of light began in rapid fire. The king squirmed out from under Zelan to move into the middle of the room and stare up at the battle raging in the sky. The sound of footfalls echoed down the hall before Kiza and Wryan burst into the room, gaping at the damage.  
  
"What the hell happened?" Wryan immediately asked.  
  
"Grey!" Amelia called, rushing to his side and applying her weak healing spell upon his face.  
  
Mira stared up at the sky with wide eyes, "Is that... Riven?" she asked hesitantly and Zelan nodded toward her.  
  
Amelia took a moment to glance up and shuddered, but it was Sean Gavrian who put into words what they were all thinking, "I'm glad he's on OUR side...."  
  
*****  
  
Zanafaar was in it's element, blasting at something with no restraint and no Flagoon in sight. It gleefully played with its Mazoku as Riven simply guided its efforts to destroy into finer precision. The Mazoku didn't have a chance, even when two others joined him in the battle against one lone ex- villain and his demon-beast. They died very painful deaths, utterly destroyed by Zanafaar, their astral energy first disrupted, then absorbed by the creature that had defeated them, making it stronger and wanting to fight more, but its host wouldn't allow any more playtime.  
  
Slowly, Riven glided down to the ground in the front courtyard of the palace where reporters hovered in the bushes, watching as Riven forced his parasite into submission and back into the depths of his soul. Mira came running down from the steps, throwing herself against his chest the moment the ghostly hydra was gone and buried her face into his chest. "I was so worried!" she sobbed. Once he got over the surprise of having her slam into him in such a way, Riven responded by wrapping his arms around her.  
  
"Sorry things turned out like this," he murmured softly, "I promise we'll get to have a nice evening together sometime where no one ends up getting blasted."  
  
She shook her head, "I don't care about that. I'm just glad you're alright." Her hand slid into the hole in the back of his shirt, touching the whole and bare skin there. She didn't see the blush, but she felt his body's immediate reaction to her the feel of her soft fingers on his slightly sweaty skin and before he could do anything, she moved to capture his lips with hers.  
  
Their moment was interrupted by someone clearing their throat and reluctantly, Mira drew back to look at Grey who was glowering slightly. "I hope you were planning on fixing the damage this time?" he said firmly to Riven who was still blushing faintly but nodded. He had lipstick smeared on his lips.  
  
***** 


	29. Har har, I fixed her.

Chapter 31  
  
Aftermath  
  
Riven fell face first onto his bed. He felt like he was covered in grime but was just too tired to get a bath, besides, Mira was still there, in his room. He'd fixed everything in the palace, cast 'Time Rewind' till he was cross-eyed and there were still things broken that they didn't know about yet, more than likely.  
  
He gave a soft strangled moan, tears coming to his eyes at that thought. That was when he felt warm hands on his back, digging into the knotted places. A small puddle of drool formed under his head after a while and finally, he was asleep.  
  
Mira worked at removing the tattered coat and tossed it to the floor, pried him over onto his back, unbuttoning his shirt, marveling at his chest once more, though it wasn't exactly the most muscled, he was no weakling and the faint outlines of muscles showed on his stomach and chest. Slowly, she laid down beside him, curling up against his side, one hand resting on his stomach, her head on his shoulder.  
  
~"Sylphiel"~ she heard him murmur, his hand twitching slightly against her. Tears almost came, but she forced herself not to cry, he wasn't cheating on her. How could he cheat on her? No, she refused to believe it this time. She closed her eyes and moved closer. Almost painfully, he rolled over to put his arms around her in his sleep, wheezing in her hair softly.  
  
****  
  
~*~*~  
  
He stood...in the lab, staring straight forward... the lab.. it was Rezo's lab. Kopii's hands twitched as rage arose in him, the urge to destroy it all, smash everything!  
  
"Calm yourself," another voice said from behind him. His own voice. He hated that voice, and yet.. at one point Rezo had been kind to him, at least somewhat. Kopii turned to face Rezo, staring into his original's eyes. Eyes? Rezo was staring back at him, but not with the same eyes. Rezo's eyes were beautiful, almost the same color as his hair and slightly shimmering. He wore red, as he always had, but it was one of his older sets of robes, one of the ones from court with wide bell sleeves that draped to his feet. A gold plated belt wrapped twice around his thin hips held the richly colored cloth close though it folded over the first looping somewhat.  
  
Kopii said nothing, feeling that he were somehow having this strange vision for a reason, perhaps it was a vision of some sort. He watched as Rezo stepped forward, reaching out one hand toward his copy's face. Kopii flinched, then steeled himself, his jaw tightening. "Riven," Rezo said softly as his fingers contacted his Kopii's skin, sliding his palm along Riven's cheek in a gentle caress. "Forgive me," he took a breath, closing his eyes briefly and coming forward another step, "Forgive me for my actions. Though I had no control of some things I did, others... I had no right to give you life then treat you as I did. Please understand that I hated myself for the things I had done before, and that I knew I probably would do in the future. I hated that the one thing I couldn't have was the one I wanted the most."  
  
Riven stared into Rezo's eyes, feeling his arms relax as his fingers slowly unclenched. "I offer no excuse, just ask forgiveness.... and that you forgive yourself as well. I know you tried." A hint of a sad smile touched Rezo's lips, "You have that same desire to help others that I had. I knew of those times you created spells on your own and tried them on me while I was asleep. But now we both know there was nothing that could really fix the problem except my death.  
  
"Riven, remember that though you might be the same as me, you might have my memories, access to all my suppockets... you're still your own person. Don't measure yourself against my accomplishments. I was just a fool after all. Blind in more ways than one. Love and be loved, Riven. You have a very beautiful woman who cares for you deeply despite what pain you caused her before. Take care of her. Don't ever neglect her as I did my wife." There was only a space of a single step between them. Rezo stood silent, his agony imprinted on his face and in his beautiful eyes. Riven closed his eyes, bowing his head for a moment, feeling Rezo's fingers slide into his hair as the copy took that last step forward and wrapped his arms somewhat muscular arms around Rezo's thinner body.  
  
A smile came to Riven's lips as he felt the difference between them. "I forgive you... Maybe in my next life we can be brothers?"  
  
There was a soft laugh, though it was choked with tears, "Yes. I would like that," Rezo replied. "Until then... Otouto."  
  
Riven opened his eyes, "What- no.. please don't go-" but Rezo had already stepped back from him clasping Riven's shoulders in a sharp grip a moment before his fingers relaxed.  
  
"You have everything that was mine... especially the library... try and do something useful with it. Good bye Otouto."  
  
-The door slammed open- or maybe it hadn't quite been slammed, just opened forcefully. Riven sat up in bed with a start, eyes immediately falling upon Grey. The Chimera stared a moment at Riven, his eyes trailing to Mira who was sleepily sitting up. A blush crept up his face and Riven half-glowered, "No. We just fell asleep," he stated firmly and got out from under the blankets, showing that he had in fact slept with his pants on. Mira was still in her dress and she blinked around the room as if wondering how she'd gotten there.  
  
Grey finally cleared his throat, "She can wear some of Amelia's off duty clothes for now. Riven- there were a lot of people wounded. Filia's healed a bunch but now she's getting some rest."  
  
"Yes, I understand," Riven said somewhat testily as he pulled out his uniform from the dresser drawer. Turning, he went into the bathroom and shut the door firmly behind him.  
  
Now it was Grey who half-glowered, "Just like Rezo," he muttered under his breath. His eyes moved from the bathroom door to Mira who had picked up her high-heels from the floor and stood nervously. "This way," he said, leading her out of Riven's room and into his own, pulling out some of Amelia's clothes and handing them to her, "You can use the shower as well," he gestured toward the bathroom that was almost identical to Riven's except that there were various feminine touches, such as scented soap and wash- towels.  
  
Mira tried to hurry with her shower, but the hot water felt so nice she ended up lingering and it was more like half an hour before she dried off and dressed herself. Upon opening the door, she was slightly startled to find the Elite woman herself sitting on the bed.  
  
Amelia looked up and gave a smile, "Hiya. Want some breakfast? It's only cold cereal because everyone's either run off or is helping to fix things. Riven's already gone on, so there's no use waiting for him."  
  
Numbly, Mira nodded. Breakfast wasn't that big of a deal, just cold cereal in the kitchens, but after she had finished, Amelia took her along the halls to the formal dining room that had been set up as an emergency ward where doctors were attempting to ease the pain of those who were hurt in the battle only the night before. Riven was halfway through the room by now, those he had healed babbling about how amazing it was. One man was extremely vocal about how he could see out his left eye- a wound he'd gotten when he was younger having blinded him for life. Riven's face was blank as a few doctors tried desperately to ask him questions that he didn't answer as if he hadn't heard them.  
  
Mira's pace slowed and she stopped, not wanting to go farther and bother Riven while he was so busy. Amelia continued onward, though, moving along the lines and healing those less critically hurt, though it took longer for her than Riven. He healed three seriously injured for every one she did. Soon, he swept past her, not even looking winded. Mira watched as he started for the door, going past her as if he hadn't even seen her, but then he stopped and returned to her. Taking her hand gently, he gave a very small smile that barely reached his eyes.  
  
With her by his side, Riven headed towards the door again, though he was still silent, gazing at the floor. "Are you alright?" Mira asked softly, sliding her fingers between his. Riven gave a nod.  
  
"I'm sorry," he murmured, "I had a dream...."  
  
Silence fell between them and Mira found she was forced to speak once more, "It's alright. It was just a dream, after all." He gave a minute head- shake. "Maybe you should take a break?" another shake of his head. Mira gave up, silence falling between them once more, looking around and realizing that they had ended up at the royal library, which still had actual books on the shelves.  
  
Sitting among the books was Jiras. He was on the floor trying to sort through a bunch of books that had fallen off the shelves. "If you want, I can fix that," Riven spoke up, causing the older man to start then blink.  
  
"Oh- no no, I couldn't ask that of you. You've already got so much-" Jiras was cut off when the books seemed to fly backwards from how they had fallen and onto the shelf. Riven let his hand fall. Slowly, Jiras got to his feet, brushing wrinkles out of his robes and giving a smile, "But thank you anyway," he said, "You're such a nice man.. Hard to believe what happened last night."  
  
Riven glanced away with a slight shrug, "You can read the old writing, correct?" he asked instead and Jiras nodded in return, looking vaguely curious. "I happen to have a very _very_ large collection of books, if you're interested." The man's eyes widened into saucers and this act of kindness seemed to make Riven feel better, for he smiled. Mira watched as he let go of her hand and walked over to an empty wall, touching it at the height the other doors were set at in the room, drawing down the wall with a piece of chalk an outline before he stepped back. Closing his eyes, Mira felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. The outline seemed to glow a moment before it dissolved, the area inside it disappearing as well to reveal the inside of a huge room, much larger then the room in which they stood, shelf after shelf of books, reaching all the way to the ceiling, three stories high. There were no windows in the room, simply a single desk upon which a few other books rested. Riven walked into the room, which was slightly musty smelling, as if it hadn't had fresh air in years, his boots clicking slightly on the stone floor.  
  
Once at the desk, he picked up the papers on it, went through the drawers, grabbing out a few odd items. Jiras watched in horror as the papers burst into flame in Riven's hand and he let the pieces fall into a garbage can next to the desk. "Why did you do that?" he asked, as if the mage had committed an act of sacrilege.  
  
Slowly, Riven looked at Jiras, "Because," he said slowly, "It had to be done. It's better no one knew what he was working on. Everything else in here is yours now. Nothing will decay in here either, preservation spells. Mostly it's magical texts, a few histories and miscellaneous things." Riven knew that Rezo had written diaries and kept them in this room, among the books, the one he'd been writing in before he went utterly insane in the bottom drawer of the desk, the things Rezo had written while insane had been taken care of, reduced to ashes in the garbage can. No one but those involved would ever know, and though it may not be quite a lie, Rezo had still been a great man.  
  
Jiras gaped at Riven a bit more before looking around the room. "God.. Where to start?" The Mage glanced at Mira, who still stood in the doorway, looking with wonder at so much paper in one room. He moved over to a shelf to the left of the desk and flicked his fingers along the spines of the books, finding one, he brought it to the desk and set it down there, his hand lingering on it before he turned and rejoined Mira, leaving the library and the happy historian to his new toys.  
  
"Sorry, I just had to take care of that," Riven said, almost absently, his fingers laced with Mira's once more as they walked casually down the hall.  
  
She hugged his arm, an arm thickened by his practicing swordwork with Zelan while they were off duty. Grey still hadn't realized. "It was very nice of you. Who collected all those books?"  
  
Riven glanced up at the ceiling a moment, "Rezo," he said without flinching, he looked down at Mira, "I had a dream.. that he talked to me, apologized for what he did to me. I realize now that it WAS rather stupid to hold a grudge against him for what he couldn't help. I realized that I'd better forgive him before I get obsessed over becoming better than him and end up becoming him instead." He gave a slight shrug. "I'm still going to work on improving myself, but only to just become better than what I am already."  
  
Mira felt a warmth spread in her heart and she stopped him, wrapping her arms around his waist, "You're already a very good person, despite your flaws. It makes you human."  
  
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Mira tipped her head back to look up at his quiet smile that made him seem far older than he looked- except for the spark of fire in his eyes, that proof that he really wasn't as old as all that. Reaching up, she slid her fingers behind his neck, pulling him down to meet her lips.  
  
*****  
  
Amelia XXXIX sat tied to a chair, her head bowed, tears collecting on her nose as she silently sobbed. She didn't want her guard to know she as crying, but she just couldn't stop, or even help the few sniffles that escaped her. Her face was red and eyes swollen but she didn't say a word to anyone. Even when her father had come in to try and talk to her. She hadn't been crying then, it was easier to seem defiant when she wasn't crying, but he'd left her and not come back.  
  
Her guard had changed several times during the night and she hadn't spoken or looked at them. How could anyone really understand what was wrong? No one knew what it was like...  
  
Behind her, the door opened and a voice mumbled to her current guard. The sound of movement, and the door closed once more. Amelia XXXIX didn't look up, even when she saw black pants clinging to well shaped legs move around one side and stand in front of her, he walked silently. A slightly rocky blueish hand twitched into view and she closed her eyes, expecting a blow of some sort. Instead, there was a gentle touch on her face and her chin was lifted.  
  
Zelan stared down at her from underneath his wiry hair and both hands came to cup her face. Still he said nothing, and there was no condemnation in his eyes as there had been in Grey's, as there had been in her own father's. "You're just lonely, aren't you?" he asked instead, his voice pitched low so that it wouldn't carry very far.  
  
She tried to pull her face from his hands but he let go of her at the first twitch of her head. Instead, he moved around behind her, a bit of light reflecting light onto the wall and Amelia XXXIX had the horrible notion that he was going to kill her. Her arms jerked reflexively when she felt something cold touch the back of her hand. Suddenly, the ropes slid loose from her chest and she sagged forward.  
  
"Come on," Zelan said softly, carefully sliding his arms around her and lifting her up.  
  
She watched as he moved toward the window, opening it and peering out before he stepped onto the sill as if he were going to jump out. "What- why are you doing this? You'll get in trouble..."  
  
His face softened from the usual hard lines he kept it in, "I'm you're guard," he said, "I'm supposed to deliver you from bad things, aren't I?" Amelia XXXIX clung to him as he launched out the window, and instead of falling, he floated, shooting into the slightly overcast sky and out of sight of the palace completely. She was still wearing the dress she'd worn to the party, though it was slightly dirty now and she hadn't been allowed to get a bath of any sort, nor proper sleep, having been tied to a chair the entire time.  
  
"Where are we going?" she asked softly.  
  
Once more, a smile crossed his face, "You ask too many questions," he told her and they dodged a bird before landing on a slightly rocky hillside that seemed desolate. It also obviously belonged to someone, for there was a house not that far from them. He walked along until he came to a large boulder set into the face of a cliff. Keeping her mouth closed, she stayed where he left her once he set her feet on the ground and watched in amazement as he easily pried the boulder loose, making enough room for them to slip in. Inside, he lifted one hand, a globe of light unfolding within it.  
  
Reaching back, Zelan took one of her hands and led her along a tunnel that extended for a ways into the mountain before the sound of running water could be heard. Amelia XXXIX's eyes widened as they forced their way through a curtain of honeysuckle that ran rampant along the entire wall of the huge cavern they had entered. The ground was covered in grass as tall as Zelan's armpits and it grew all the way to the edge of a crystal clear pool. Butterflies of all colors and sizes frolicked like fairies through the grass and on the vines. At least fifty feet up the wall to their left was the outlet of a subterranean river that looked like it had flowed through the mountains with the purest snow as it's source and gone below the surface to hide from the horror the world had become. Even higher above, there was a single hole from which sunlight poured in, giving the plants the light they needed to grow while steam rose from the pool the waterfall flowed into.  
  
"How... did you know about this place?" she whispered, though her words were lost in the rush of the falling water, Zelan still heard and turned towards her with a smile.  
  
"I grew up in this area," he said, "Aunt Lina's cottage wasn't that far away and I used to come here to practice the sword when Uncle Gourry was too busy. Besides.. I liked the peace. I made sure no one would mess with this area because I put an aversion spell on the boulder outside.  
  
Amelia XXXIX drifted forward through the grass to the edge of the pool and pushed the tall stocks aside to crouch and dip her fingers into the warm water. "It's warm... There must be a hot spring underneath." Zelan seemed proud of himself and beamed a smile at her. After a moment, he seemed to remember something and reached into his pocket, pulling out a dagger, working on cutting the grass down in a small area at the side of the pool. The princess watched, once more shocked by his abilities, as he pulled a bag out of his pocket, which in turn contained a blanket, a few nice towels, changes of clothing for them and a basket with lunch.  
  
She felt her eyes watering once more as he finished setting everything out and she threw her arms around his shoulders. "No one's ever done anything like this for me," she sobbed into his shoulder, "Thank you!"  
  
At first, he was too startled to react, but then he put his arms around her and returned the hug. After a while, she let go of him and stripped out of her nice dress, took her hair down and dashed naked into the water, swimming around for a bit before coming back towards shore. "Aren't you going to join me?" she asked coyly, standing up to expose herself fully to him. Zelan's face turned completely red, but he couldn't pull his eyes from her.  
  
"I- can't swim," he finally stammered out, "I sink.. like a rock."  
  
Laughing, she waded out of the pool and pulled him to his feet, or tried to, but she found that he was indeed very heavy. She changed tactics and went for his feet instead, removing his boots and tossing them onto the blanket before going for his shirt and she had it off before he could finally catch her hands.  
  
For a brief moment, Zelan simply stared into her eyes, his face slightly flushed from embarrassment but then he pulled her closer, using her hands, putting his lips to hers in a bold move that shocked her once more. Though the kiss wasn't the best in the world, it was given with much more feeling then she had ever experienced in her life. Finally, Zelan let her lips go, but his gentle but firm grip remained on her hands. "Amelia," he said softly, "You...you're very beautiful, and.. even if you could never love me, please... know that I.." his blush deepened as he stared into her eyes. His mouth moved, yet his voice had locked up and his hands were shaking. He seemed to be stuck on the word 'I'.  
  
Even if he had been able to finish, he wouldn't have gotten the chance to. Amelia XXXIX pulled her hands from his and put them to his face instead as she leaned forward to kiss him deeply, sliding her arms around his shoulders and pressing herself against him.  
  
****  
  
He lay in a complete daze, unsure of what had really happened, except that it was really good and he was likely to get in big trouble for it if anyone found out. His little princess lay flush against his side, her curved contours matching his wonderfully. He felt slightly guilty that he hadn't managed to tell her everything he'd brought her out to tell her, but he figured she'd gotten the idea, which might have been why she did what she had. For it HAD been she who started it.  
  
Zelan took a long breath and sighed, feeling her hand twitch where it lay on his chest. Others would say he'd made a mistake in giving his heart to such a shallow girl as she. But he had seen her, he had witnessed her true side in the year and a half he'd been her guard and it was only when she had pissed Riven off enough to deserve getting blasted, he'd realized his heart.  
  
Sure, she could be a shallow little brat, but had she really ever been shown that money and status didn't matter when it came to true friends? As far as he'd seen, she hadn't. Not even her father truly cared for her, he rarely spent time with her unless he had to. So, Zelan had tried to be nicer to her and seen her warming up slightly, even with her fake friends as a result.  
  
Now, she lay against his side, hair curled and damp from their passion, and somehow, Zelan felt like it was supposed to happen this way. Among his clothes, there was a shrill beeping, telling him he was being called directly. Letting go of Amelia XXXIX with one hand, he shifted through his clothes and finally found the earplug, after a bit, he found the wrist unit and pressed the button to take the call.  
  
~"Zelan- where are you? The princess is missing."~ His father.  
  
He sighed and said clearly, ~"She's fine,"~ which wasn't what Grey had wanted to know, but that was what he'd have to deal with. ~"I'm keeping an eye on her."~ Perhaps that would soothe his father's nerves?  
  
~"Damn it, Where the hell ARE You?! You didn't ASK to take her out!"~ Nope.  
  
Yawning, Zelan gave a slight stretch and felt her move against him contentedly. ~"Well, I did, so deal with it."~  
  
Zelan could imagine Grey grinding his teeth into powder at that statement and after a while the older Chimera replied with, ~"Zelan, I am both your father and your commanding officer, and AS that, I demand to know what the hell got into your head to just take her out like nothing had happened at all! She WAS working with Xelloss, you might want to remember.... or have you defected to their side too?"~  
  
~"Cephied! You're so fricken suspicious about everything! Go take a nap before your head explodes from the stress. I'm fifteen now and you treat me like I'm three or just related to Gourry. I'm watching her and more than likely when we get back tonight you'll see a major change."~ With that, he turned off the wrist unit, removed his earplug and dropped them aside.  
  
Looking down, he met Amelia XXXIX's eyes. "Who was it?"  
  
"Just dad, yelling at me for taking you out on a date."  
  
She gave a smile, "A date? I've never been taken out before," she said, "Always had to ask the guy myself... never was any fun. Or at least as much fun as this has been. No one to watch us and take pictures and stuff." Amelia XXXIX shifted and sat up, stretching her arms above her head before she stood and walked to the edge of the pool. Zelan linked his hands behind his head and watched her for a moment before he stood as well and waded into the water a little ways before having a seat on the hot smooth rocks that made the bottom. Soft arms wrapped around his shoulders from behind and he could feel her breath against his neck.  
  
"Thank you..." she said softly into his hair, "Thank you for not caring about what I am. Thank you for just being there for me and showing me what to really live for. I'm such a moron... I thought I wanted Grey because... Because I thought he would make me feel better about myself." Hot tears fell onto his shoulder and he reached back to pull her around him and against his chest.  
  
Amelia XXXIX curled up against him gratefully accepting his comfort. "I was so wrong," she said softly, feeling his fingers running through her hair.  
  
"Everyone makes mistakes. All you can really do is follow your heart," he gave a chuckle, "Of course... just don't storm the palace by yourself just because technically you're a prince."  
  
She lifted her eyes, blinking at him, "But..."  
  
Zelan grinned at her, "Just because mom abdicated doesn't mean that I had to, though I was never given a title or recognized as a rightful heir." He shook his head, "I'd always wanted to be legitimate," he said, "That was always my dream. That I wouldn't be looked at like the bastard I am. I couldn't let you mess up my dream for a silly little crush that I knew you would get over if you were shown what real love was." He put his palm to her cheek. "This...this is real love, Amelia. I love you." He'd finally gotten it out. A heavy weight lifted from his chest at those whispered words and her eyes glittered with unshed tears. "And... whether you love me or not doesn't matter, because... at least I tried and that's what counts, right?"  
  
"Yes," she said softly, "Yes, that's what counts," she put her head against his shoulder once more, feeling his warm and heavy arms wrap around her once more, making her feel safe. "I could love you," she told him, "Teach me how to and I will."  
  
Zelan grinned almost from ear to ear, "Then your sensai of love I will be."  
  
***** 


	30. The END!

*innocent look* Okay.. I got sappy in that last chapter.. sorry... but what do you think of Amelia XXXIX NOW? Not such a baka, hopefully..  
  
I promise Fi and Xel will get together in this chap! I've just gotta figer out a way for them to get it on and stay IC.  
  
  
  
Chapter 32  
  
The...end... *CRY!!!!* ;.;  
  
Grey growled under his breath one last time. "That.. that cheeky boy!" he suddenly shouted, causing those around him to turn and stare though the wind whipped away his words almost as soon as they were out of his mouth. This didn't cause the Chimera as much embarrassment as it would have in earlier years, simply because he was far too pissed to notice the looks of his comrades. The hard wind pulled at his hair and clothes as he glowered at the horizon. Amelia slid closer to her lover, suppressing her snigger as she patted his shoulder in a patronizing manor. "It's YOUR fault he's like that," Grey stated firmly, moving his glare to Amelia who finally burst into giggles, putting her face against his chest.  
  
She wiped her eyes and looked up at his face, "If it is, then I'm proud of it. He's growing up to be just like you." To ease his bruised ego, she gave him a kiss on his nose, "We can do it without Zelan, I'm sure."  
  
"We'll have to," Grey muttered, "He mentioned not coming back till tonight."  
  
And the audience that was there, of course it was a group of various Elite's, mostly mages, or those who had once been in a past life, and Sean Gavrian, the janitor who had recently been transferred to the palace by Katachi. Which didn't really have any importance on the mission, he was just armed with a psysword and told to hack up the monsters that attacked him. That was fine with him, but he apparently didn't remember how to use a sword, though something about the spysword made him think he knew. Or something.. whatever it was that Sean did that came close enough to thinking that it could be defined by that word.  
  
The group consisted of Grey, Amelia, Mira, Riven, Kiza, Wryan, Filia, and Sean, which wasn't that bad of a group, if you just looked at the numbers. Grey put his hand to his face and rubbed hard, making some sand scrape off. "Right, let's move out then," he said and turned, heading toward the crater that Flagoon had once grown in. Overhead, the sky was a darker grey than usual and on the horizon was a black cloud, looming, threatening. Lightning flashed within it as it was driven higher into the sky by a hard wind. Mira clung close to Riven, their hair whipping to one side and tangling together.  
  
"Riven, can you sense it?" Amelia called back over a particularly loud blast of wind.  
  
The Kopii was busy staring at the cloud, his face gone pale, it was Mira's tripping that brought him back to reality and he shivered slightly. "We have to hurry," he said and grabbed up Mira, focusing his power and casting a Rei Wing. "Watch our backs, we'll go on down and find it." The wind whipped around the bubble and attempted to blow him off course, but he grit his teeth and shot forward and down into the almost eternally deep hole that Phibrizzo had created for his new temple... that Lina Inverse had blasted with her subsequent Giga Slave. The wind wasn't as strong so deep, but Mira clung to him as what looked like the arms of long-dead bodies stuck out of the nearby wall. The skeletal branches, or perhaps roots, shook slightly in the wind, trying to grab at them while the wind almost smashed them against the wall in a particularly strong gust.  
  
"Oh God," she mumbled, clutching Riven's shirt. He moved his arms, wrapping his deep red cloak around her, the one he had once wore with his white robes.  
  
"We're close," Riven told her softly as they descended still further.  
  
****  
  
Grey peered down into the immense hole, remembering how he had followed Lina down into it that one time to find the Hellmaster. But that was long past. Amelia pressed close to him, "Why does everything happen to Siraag?" she asked rhetorically and felt his arm go around her shoulders.  
  
"So we just stand around and wait?" Wryan asked testily, coming to stand beside Grey.  
  
A twitch, then Grey controlled his anger, "Yes," he told the redhead firmly.  
  
"Actually no." Another voice stated near them. The three turned to look at a disturbing creature with an apparent liking for spider-like legs, for a set of eight sprouted from its back. "You'll die is what you'll do."  
  
****  
  
Riven landed, finally, after what seemed forever of going straight downwards. He looked around nervously, trying to find something that looked like a piece of Flagoon, but there was nothing from that tree. A pit a little ways away marked where the scientists had dug him up from and he moved over towards that place, hoping that there would be something there. Nothing.  
  
"Cephied," he mumbled, "Flagoon isn't being helpful."  
  
Mira stood with her head bowed, "I hope I can do what you need me to," she said softly. "I just don't...know... I never felt I was anything other than what I am."  
  
Riven touched her face gently. "You can do it," he told her, soft but firm, "Just close your eyes and look deep within yourself." He too closed his eyes, but became distracted by the sound of battling far above. A frown marred his lips and he opened his eyes to stare upwards into the shadows and single small speck of light far above.  
  
Suddenly, Mira yanked his hand, "It's there!" she said excitedly, pulling him over to the wall where she let go and began digging with her fingers, breaking her nails in her efforts. Riven grabbed up a piece of rock, chipping out the hardened dirt. It wasn't long before Mira stopped him and carefully pulled out what looked like a tiny seed with tender roots beginning to sprout.  
  
"Let's get it up quickly and plant it. I think they're having a bit of trouble up there." He grabbed her around the waist and shot into the air, heedless of the Mazoku he passed on the way up. Twice, the Mazoku tried to appear in their way but was blown away by the wind of their passage, it joined them on the surface though. "We got it!" Riven shouted to those fighting and the spider Mazoku with his cohort attempted to ambush them. The rest of the group, though tired, attacked the Mazoku once more and kept them away while Mira carefully planted the seed.  
  
She looked worriedly over her shoulder at Riven, "Now what do we do?" she asked, "Just leave it?"  
  
Quickly, Riven shook his head in return, "No, you've gotta cast ..what was that spell- Recovery. Yes. Here, I'll teach it to you real quick." He put his dirty hands to her forehead, quickly sweeping her through the mechanics of spellcasting, then getting to the spell itself. "You can do it. I know you can." He kissed her mouth and moved back to stand behind her.  
  
Around them, a full scale war waged with only a small group of eight on one side...on the other... the Mazoku force had multiplied from two to ten thousand it seemed, the black cloud that had been on the horizon had arrived during Riven's time underground and it turned out to be a swarm of Mazoku, destroying everything in their path like army ants. Mira stepped back, Riven watching over her and the surrounding area as she lifted her arms, mumbling the words he'd given to her and waving her hands. Nothing happened.  
  
Riven clenched his teeth. No. Things would NOT go wrong NOW. Not in the middle of a battle and their very universe was at stake. He lunged forward, calling up Zanafaar's power and slammed his hand down on top of the mound the seedling had been buried beneath. "Cast it again!" he shouted at Mira and she obediently did so, throwing her full effort into it while the hydra- like ghost of Zanafaar arose about him like a writhing eel on land.  
  
He could feel it this time. Flagoon began draining Zanafaar, leaving his host feeling weak, but a thin twig branched up from between his fingers and continued to grow. Then Mira's spell hit.  
  
In a rush, Flagoon burst upwards, knocking Riven back, roots delving deep into the soil as well as surfacing. As he sat in shock, a root surfaced beneath his rear, bearing him upward slightly as the trunk swelled out further. Riven felt weak, he couldn't think straight, rather suddenly, a disorienting feeling that he remembered having before when he had been only a copy. Mira rushed to his side then, cradling his head against her breast and asking insistently if he was alright. Riven couldn't answer, he couldn't even understand half the question. It was the sudden surge of power that warned him. He shoved Mira away as it exploded into him, almost ripping him apart.  
  
He blacked out.  
  
*****  
  
Grey aimed and blasted another Mazoku with an Emekial lance, unable to do much else to them except hold them off for a while. There seemed to be a problem with the tree. He happened to glance back as Mira tried casting the spell again, then all movement on the field of battle stopped as Flagoon swelled into its crowning glory, knocking Riven back and Mira hastily retreated but only to rush back to her love's side. She begged him to answer her, begged to know if he was alright, but he didn't answer. Instead, he suddenly shoved her away with force enough to send her sprawling, but perhaps that was for the best, for it was then that a bright circle of light engulfed him, snapping shut, leaving the space he'd occupied empty.  
  
"RIVEN!!!" Mira screamed, tears streaming down her face. "Oh God... Please let him be alive!" She begged. The Mazoku seemed disturbed for a moment, then they began attacking once more and Grey dodged back to cover Mira.  
  
"Stop that and start being useful," Grey snapped at her, headless of her grief, now just wasn't the time. "You know the basics of healing, so do some!" Hurriedly, she nodded, wiping her face and getting to her feet, concentrating through her tears and casting a spell on Grey as he continued to fend off Mazoku who attempted to attack the tree. The others gathered nearby. Filia had changed to dragon form for better blasting capabilities, but she was still showing the stress. Grey had very little hope that they would win. So much for Flagoon being their symbol or whatever it was Riven had predicted. They were going to die.  
  
Amelia looked at them all for a brief moment before she started shouting loudly, "LIFE IS WONDERFUL! LIFE IS WONDERFUL!" The Mazoku shied away, fearing her determined protest and she leapt atop a branch of Flagoon, then began her most terrifying and longest ever speech. "You creatures of darkness and chaos! You who so unJustly wrong the world by attacking it without good cause- You are Bad!" she told them firmly, waving a finger, "How can you live with yourselves if your existence is nothing but disorder, pain, and terror? You should EMBRACE life for the good times! You should live for LOVE! And PEACE! Justice should burn within your hearts, not anger! Release your anger and become ONE with nature! LOVE yourself and all other cute furry creatures because LIFE IS WONDERFUL and it is up to ME to make sure that it stays that way! So Repeat After Me- LIFE IS WONDERFUL!- " Filia joined in, clasping her hands together. Grey blushed deeply but shouted out. The Mazoku were retreating somewhat from the terrible cuteness that Filia and Amelia were doing... an interpretive dance about how Life is Wonderful (and don't you forget it either).  
  
This DID give Mira the chance to finish healing them, though she felt so tired afterward that she fell to her knees and simply sat there in numb shock as the whole group around her were dancing and singing about happy things. It was even disgusting to her- she who liked cute fuzzy things.  
  
*****  
  
Riven slowly opened his eyes- wait, they were already open. He found he was staring at the sky with a terrible headache throbbing in the back of his skull. His body felt numb, but he forced himself to sit up and look around. Trees.. like.. a forest. A real forest around him. Slowly, he stood and dusted off his clothes, looking up at the sky. "Where am I?" he asked rhetorically. He was surprised when a reverberating voice answered him.  
  
"My world."  
  
He clutched his head, casting a healing spell. "Where are you?"  
  
"Inside you," the voice replied, tone seeming to have been modified slightly. "I am the one you call Zanafaar. My entire essence has been transferred and blended with your spirit."  
  
"Oh." Riven rubbed his head. "Your world... Well. That's real helpful of Flagoon. What the hell am I going to do HERE?"  
  
Zanafaar seemed vaguely annoyed, or what passed for vaguely annoyed when it came to a creature who's entire existence was based around despising everything. "If you want to save your world, then you'd better get moving."  
  
Clenching his fists, Riven glared at nothing, "Go WHERE? I don't know where anything is in this world, I don't even know why I'm here!"  
  
Now Zanafaar was pleased, or as pleased as the demon-beast could get. "Then perhaps I could take over?" it seemed to plead and Riven nodded slightly.  
  
"No getting side-tracked though... What ARE we here for?"  
  
The Demon-beast surged through his blood, taking hold of his body and twisting the form into what it preferred. It did not answer either, instead, it spread its newly formed wings and launched into the air, gliding over the ground at a rapid speed. Several specks arose from the endless forest, sending blasts at them and whatever shots would have hit were deflected by a shield. One head swayed backwards to return the blasts but most stayed stretched in the direction they were going. Riven felt disoriented by having seven sets of eyes. He felt like a tiny speck inside a huge body that was not under his own control, which was what he really was.  
  
A building came into view and soon was under them. Zanafaar backwinged and hove over the domed roof of the building, a few heads turning downward to blast it away. More specks arose to blast at them. They turned out to be people, strange people, made mostly of power.  
  
"I think that's enough of that, Zan, the natives are getting pissed," Riven commented, his voice a tiny murmur in the violence that was Zanafaar.  
  
Zanafaar sent a few blasts at those attacking it before retreating down into Riven. Once more, his body twisted, returning to its original form and for a brief moment, he fell, then he regained control of his movements and cast a Rei Wing, darting down into the building that appeared to be ...some sort of weaponry. He landed carefully on the floor, only to dodge a blast from the sky.  
  
One of the strange people who had been attacking him floated down through the huge hole in the ceiling of the building "Creature-" he started, only to have Riven swirl to face him and jab a finger into his face.  
  
"Look you, EVERYTHING'S goin down the hole if I don't find something to fight a huge swarm of Mazoku lead by the Beastmaster's General-Priest, so if you get in my way I'll let Zanafaar have playtime. Now shut up or help me."  
  
For a moment, the Overworld native stared at Riven's finger and didn't answer. The Elite got annoyed and turned away, stalking toward a pedestal that held what looked to be five weapons... incomplete.  
  
"Wait-" the Overworlder said, stepping forward. He seemed to have pink hair arranged straight upwards with a prominent widow's peak on his forehead. His eyes were rather angular and he seemed to be in a permanent bad mood. "You plan to take the Weapons of Light?"  
  
Riven smirked and turned to face the creature with that same smirk and the bow in hand, "Yes, I think I do," he stated, opening his eyes, "And you're not going to stop me. I've got too much at stake to let everything go to hell in my world." Turning once more, he picked up the other weapons, feeling their power. He tucked them under his arms, a short stick of some sort, a claw, sword hilt, bow, and what could be a lance or staff of some sort. No telling until it was invoked, but Riven didn't want to risk that right now. He had no prior experience with anything but the sword of Light. "Now.. how to get back..." he muttered to himself.  
  
"Now that you're done, Flagoon will take us back," Zanafaar replied blandly and Riven could already feel his insides twisting apart and the light wash over his vision.  
  
*****  
  
A pocket of light errupted at the base of Flagoon, depositing a figure that immediately collapsed to its knees. Mira slowly lifted her head to look, then gasped, "RIVEN!" she staggered to her feet and ran to him. "Are you alright- oh my.. what ARE those?"  
  
Riven snirked slightly, picking up the seemingly empty hilt, "Sean!" he called, to the brunet and threw the item fairly accurately. He caught it, dropping the psysword in his surprise and stared at the thing in his hands.  
  
"Hey!" he said happily, "I remember this!"  
  
Kiza dashed over and snatched up the bow, grinning evilly. Grey was next to come, grabbing up the longest one and the claw, the latter of which he tossed to Amelia. Wryan was last and snatched up the short stick. "I dunno how this thing works, but by everyone else's reaction, it's gotta be good!"  
  
Riven's smirk grew even wider, "Try saying-"  
  
"LIGHT COME FORTH!" Four voices shouted at once and a blinding flash engulfed the area. Mira gasped, clinging to Riven.  
  
"Okay," Wryan said and shrugged, "Light come forth," he said and nothing happened.  
  
Shaking his head, Riven put his arms around Mira, holding her tightly, glad to be back, "Try using it like a psysword."  
  
Wryan's eyes lit up, "Ohh! Now I get it," he said and concentrated as he said, "Light come forth!" and so it did, the short stick turning to an ax.  
  
The Mazoku slowly recovered from the bombardment of cute-ness once it had stopped and stared at the group who now clasped fantastic weapons. "ATTACK!" Kiza shouted lifting her bow into the air, as if she had always been the leader of the group and the quartet surged forward, laying about with their glowing weapons, working in unison like no other group Wryan had ever seen. He rubbed at his eyes, thinking he was hallucinating as the four seemed to change, becoming the legendary heroes that were depicted in every school text. Amelia De Seyruun, Zelgadis Graywords, Lina Inverse, and Gourry Gabriev. Wryan was surprised to find that Sean was actually a much better sword fighter than he had displayed before, his skill perhaps inherent in his spirit and all he needed was the right weapon to bring it out.  
  
"I think you should get to work," Riven commented, standing beside Mira still, "There's still some Mazoku not getting their asses busted." He winked slightly.  
  
Wryan looked at the couple curiously, "What about you?"  
  
"I've got all I need," Riven said, hugging Mira close for a moment. "You just watch yourself. We'll do what we can but it's everyone for themselves, pretty much. Good luck." Reluctantly, Wryan nodded and dashed off into the fray, laying about with his weightless ax of doom. Riven gave Mira one last kiss and put her under a root of Flagoon. "Stay here," he said, "And please keep safe." With that, he turned and dashed out away from the tree, leaping into the air with a Rei wing and darting in among the cloud of Mazoku who tried to blast him but found he was too fast.  
  
As he darted farther upwards, he relaxed, feeling Zanafaar gleefully boil upwards and shred his body and rearrange it to the demon-beast's liking. Seven yellow-eyed heads swiveled in all directions sending blasts at the attacking Mazoku and any disrupted enough to blink out of existence on this plane where absorbed by the beast, making it more powerful.  
  
The cloud cleared rather speedily and it wasn't long before Zanafaar was alone in the sky, staring around. "Something isn't right," Riven commented and felt an agreement from the Demon-beast. Idly, they circled around Flagoon. Below, the group was rejoicing, thinking they had won, except for Grey, he was cynical enough to know that though it had been hard, the battle wasn't over with.  
  
A wave of corrupt blackness surged over the land, the sounds of jubilation faded as eyes turned toward the source. "So we meet again, Lina Inverse," a terrifying voice murmured from the very air, "Perhaps you won't find me so easy to defeat this time."  
  
Riven felt pure terror- from Zanafaar, and rather suddenly, he had to revert to his Rei Wing. Gliding down, he landed beside the group, Mira dashing up to clutch his waist, hiding under his cloak like some child, though he understood her fear. Something that would cause Zanafaar to retreat was likely to be very bad.  
  
A shimmer of darkness consolidated in the air a ways from the tree, the mists of blood-stained black drifting into the shape of none other than Rezo, though his eyes glowed deep red. "I am Shabranigdu," the form said, though the voice that emitted from the mouth was not that of the Red Priest.  
  
"Why this form?" Grey asked, his grip tightening on his weapon.  
  
The laugh that burst forth from the humanoid Dark Lord was enough to knock Wryan to his knees. "Because it disturbs the majority of you!" Riven realized it was indeed true, Rezo had been the cause of much pain for Zelgadis, he had been an enemy to Lina and Gourry, Amelia recalled fighting Kopii, and Riven... Firmly, he closed his eyes, forcing himself to recall the dream of Rezo he had. The dream in which he had forgiven Rezo.  
  
"That's rather cruel of you to stain his memory any more than you already have," Riven spoke up, stepping forward, "He didn't deserve what you did to him. He was a good man until you started messing with his mind- I know! I have every memory." Riven knew that the Dark Lord wasn't very impressed by this little outburst, but perhaps he could convince the others to not be frightened.. They had to keep hope that they would win, or they wouldn't have a chance.  
  
Grey wasn't convinced. "Who cares!" Kiza shouted, brandishing her bow, "We're going to beat the crap out of you anyway!"  
  
"We'll see about that."  
  
Wryan staggered to his feet, "Grey- if you'd taught me the Giga Slave we could be finished with this-"  
  
"No!" Mira suddenly shouted, "It's too dangerous! We can't use that spell!" Grey sighed. Arguing wasn't going to help matters much, even if Ruby Eyes was content to let them work themselves up into a fit before killing them.  
  
Kiza joined the argument, whining, "It worked LAST time-"  
  
"Out of sheer luck," Grey put in, "No, it's not an option we're going to use." He wished deeply that Kiza were really Lina in the flesh as well as spirit, it would make things so much easier.  
  
"Enough," Shabranigdu stated, flinging one hand up and causing the ground to shake- then collapse beneath them as spikes of earth shot upwards. Riven grabbed hold of Mira and dodged aside from a spike that burst forth beneath their feet.  
  
Wryan staggered over to Kiza, clutching her arm. "Cast it!" he begged, "I've never lost a battle before and I really don't want to start NOW!! Cast it before it's too late!"  
  
Kiza stared at him with wide eyes. "The Giga Slave? I can't!" Ruby Eyes laughed maniacally, flicking his fingers and causing the ground to melt, turning from spikes of rock to lava.  
  
"WHY CAN'T YOU!? You're supposed to be Lina Inverse after all!!" Wryan shrieked and hopped on top of a spike that had begun to sink to keep from being fried to death, the rest of the group did the same- except for Riven, who simply levitated above the lava, Mira in his arms.  
  
The very short girl's eyes watered, "I can't cast it!!" she cried, "My spells only come when someone pisses me off!"  
  
In response, the redhead's eyes lit up, "Little brat!" he yelled at her, "Shortie! No breasts-"  
  
"DEMONA CRYSTAL!" Kiza shrieked. Wryan leapt from his spike as the spell hit, then spread over the ground, freezing the lava.  
  
Once more, the terrifying laugh came from Shabranigdu, "Very amusing," he said as Wryan landed, slipped and crashed onto his face.  
  
"Aim at HIM! Not me!" the redhead shouted, pushing himself up to find Kiza scowling at him.  
  
"I TOLD you! I can't cast it!" She turned and scowled next at Ruby Eyes, "And STOP laughing like that! I hate it! It reminds me of someone!" She leveled her bow at him and cast an arrow only to be shocked when it was absorbed by a shield around the Demon Lord.  
  
Slowly, he paced forward, his glimmering red-filled eyes casting a lurid light upon the ice. Grey and Amelia had stood silently, watching the scene with their hands clasped together. There wasn't much that could be done. Their powers were useless, the weapons of light were useless.. and Kiza couldn't remember the Giga Slave off the top of her head.  
  
~"Darkness beyond the blackest pitch,  
  
Deeper than the deepest night,  
  
You who shine like Gold upon the Sea of Chaos"~  
  
Shocked eyes turned toward Riven who still had Mira clinging to his waist and desperately trying to break his concentration as his hands lifted, gold etched lightning snapping between them and the sky darkened to an even blacker shade then before, the sun a single golden circle high overhead, looking upon the scene with a stoic glare that gave shadows a stark nature against the whitened ground.  
  
Wryan demanded of Kiza, "Is he casting it?"  
  
"I don't know!!" she shrieked back at him only to have a small piece of ice hit her in the head.  
  
"Both of you shut up or he'll send us all into nothing," Grey snapped.  
  
For the first time since Shabranigdu's appearance, Filia spoke up, ~"Riven, Stop, there might be another way."~ The crackling lightning gathering rather suddenly dissipated and the sky brightened somewhat. Ruby Eyes still waited patiently for them to find some way to defeat him.  
  
"Hai- there IS another way," a nasal voice stated from where the owner sat on one of Flagoon's branches, sipping tea. "But it'll come at a price." The squinted eyes opened to stare at Filia who bristled somewhat.  
  
Riven eyed the Mazoku, "We have no reason to trust you."  
  
Grey slowly hung his head and sighed. "That's the point. You don't trust him, just work with him and maybe things will turn out okay. What's your price, Xelloss?"  
  
The Trickster Priest grinned once more, "Why- a kiss! From Filia."  
  
"NAMAGOMI!!!!!! I'd -" she snapped her mouth shut, "Fine..." she growled, very low in her throat and clenched her fingers into her palms.  
  
The Dark Lord continued to laugh softly over the entire exchange, feeding off the emotions of the area. Xelloss hopped down from the branch and landed beside Filia with a gleeful smirk on his face. Reaching out, he grabbed the Gold Dragon by the shoulders. Her hands went from fists, about to punch Xelloss, then completely relaxed.  
  
Finally, Xelloss let her go and stepped back with a cocky smirk on his lips. "Alright, Xelloss, you've gotten your part," Grey pointed out and the Mazoku skipped over to Kiza, plopping one hand onto her shoulder. After a moment more, Filia joined him, putting her hand on Kiza's other shoulder. "Just be ready to fire the bow when they're ready," Grey told her. Fearfully, Kiza nodded, watching as the darkness of Xelloss expanded outward and the light from Filia put the Mazoku in sharp contrast.  
  
She lifted her arms, bow ready, drawing back one hand-  
  
***** 


	31. Epilogue

Cephied.. I hope yall don't kill me for Ch 32... I know the battle sucked. I.. seem to have lost momentum in writing it.. but here's an Epilogue, I hope you like it better... definitely containing demented X/F.  
  
Epilogue  
  
Amelia stood in front of the bathroom mirror, staring at herself, or more, at her waistline, which was rapidly disappearing. More than a week had passed and not only had she not had her Time of Month, but her power hadn't returned. That, combined with the early morning nausea could probably mean only one thing. A smile suddenly sprang to her lips, "Won't Zelgadis be so happy," she said gleefully. "Maybe he'll get around to marrying me before it's too late?"  
  
She left the bathroom and headed for the hallway, where she found Zelan and the princess walking toward her room, holding hands. Once more, Amelia smiled, only this time in a more motherly fashion. "My little boy's all grown up... Just like his father. Just like me," she shook her head and moved on, giving the two children privacy.  
  
Next, she passed Riven's room, his door was left open a bit, so she dared to peek in, finding the owner of the room asleep on top of the blankets on the bed. In his arms was Mira. They were both fully clothed, except Riven was missing both shoes and socks, but that was alright. "How cute," Amelia murmured to herself and closed the door. Further down the hall she came upon Xelloss, who was leaning against the wall and smirking.  
  
"What've you done?" Amelia automatically asked suspiciously.  
  
The Mazoku opened his eyes to look innocent, but didn't quite pull it off as well as he could have hoped, for that smirk was still pinned to his lips. "I haven't done a thing..."  
  
Filia slammed open her door rather suddenly, though she was just in time to hear Xelloss answer. "You Liar!" She was rumpled, her hair a mess and her clothes looked hastily donned. A blush filed its way over Amelia's face and she hurriedly moved on, eyes slightly widened. She hadn't ever expected THOSE two to get anything like THAT going, but...people changed, and apparently so did Ryuzoku and Mazoku.  
  
That left one last person, but where was he? Amelia wandered the halls for a bit before ending up in the library. Yes, there he was, with Jiras working on translating some of the books Riven had given to the scholar. She moved in and draped herself over her lover's shoulders, kissing one of his blue pointy ears, knowing the reaction she would get.  
  
Grey lifted his head from the keyboard he was using to look at her. "What?"  
  
"You're so rude sometimes," Amelia said in response, one hand caressing his hair and pushing it down out of her face a bit. "I just wanted to ask you a question."  
  
He sighed, pushing the keyboard away and straightening in his chair as she moved to sit in his lap. She took one of his hands, playing with his fingers somewhat, silence falling in the library after Jiras made a tasteful retreat into the subpocket room that Riven had linked to the library. "What did you want to ask me?" Grey finally asked somewhat testily.  
  
Amelia smiled at him, she seemed to think about her words for a very long moment before she said, "Would you prefer a boy or girl?"  
  
**** 


End file.
